Class JA – temporary use of land for petroleum exploration

Class JA – temporary use of land etc in respect of petroleum exploration

We will not be expanding upon Class JA, which is for the temporary use of land for petroleum exploration for no more than 28 consecutive days more than 50 metres of residential usage, within Planning Geek at this time.

The legislation can be found below. If you need the guidance of Planning Geek in the process for Class JA, please contact us for any assistance or book a Zoom call today.

Legislation

Class JA – temporary use of land etc in respect of petroleum exploration

Permitted development

JA. Development on any land during a period not exceeding 28 consecutive days consisting of the drilling of boreholes for the purposes of—

(a) carrying out groundwater monitoring;

(b) carrying out seismic monitoring; or

(c) locating and appraising the condition of mines,

which is preparatory to potential petroleum exploration, and the provision or assembly on that land or adjoining land of any structure required in connection with any of those drilling, monitoring or locating and appraising operations.

Development not permitted

JA.1. Development is not permitted by Class JA if—

(a) any operation would be carried out within 50 metres of any part of an occupied residential building or a building occupied as a hospital or school;

(b) any operation would be carried out within a National Park, an area of outstanding natural beauty, a site of archaeological interest, a site of special scientific interest or the Broads;

(d) any structure assembled or provided would exceed 15 metres in height, or, where the structure would be within 3 kilometres of the perimeter of an aerodrome, 3 metres in height;

(e) in the case of boreholes for locating and appraising the condition of mines, the borehole exceeds 160 metres in depth; or

(f) drilling would be carried out within a protected groundwater source area.

Conditions

JA.2. Development is permitted by Class JA subject to the following conditions—

(a) no operations are carried out between 6.00pm and 7.00am;

(b) no trees on the land are removed, felled, lopped or topped and no other thing is done on the land likely to harm or damage any trees, unless the mineral planning authority have so agreed in writing;

(c) within a period of 28 days from the cessation of operations unless the mineral planning authority have agreed otherwise in writing—
(i) any structure permitted by Class JA and any waste material arising from other development so permitted is removed from the land;
(ii) any borehole is adequately sealed;
(iii) the surface of the land on which any operations have been carried out is levelled and any topsoil replaced as the uppermost layer, and
(iv) the land is, so far as is practicable, restored to its condition before the development took place, including the carrying out of any necessary seeding and replanting;

(d) the developer notifies the Environment Agency and the relevant drinking water supply undertaker in writing of its intention to carry out the development (specifying the nature and location of the development), and no development takes place until 28 days after that notification; and

(e) in the case of boreholes for locating and appraising the condition of mines, the developer notifies the Coal Authority in writing of its intention to carry out the development (specifying the nature and location of the development), and no development takes place until 28 days after that notification.

Interpretation of Class JA

JA.3.—(1) For the purposes of Class JA, “protected groundwater source area” means any land at a depth of less than 1,200 metres beneath a relevant surface area.

(2) In paragraph (1), “relevant surface area” means any land at the surface that is—

(a) within 50 metres of a point at the surface at which water is abstracted from underground strata and which is used to supply water for domestic or food production purposes, or

(b) within or above a zone defined by a 50-day travel time for groundwater to reach a groundwater abstraction point that is used to supply water for domestic or food production purposes.

Temporary Petroleum Exploration Page Updated: 16th August 2023