What other development can you include with your significant infrastructure project (SIP) application

A significant infrastructure project (SIP) may provide consent for other development related to that SIP. This is called associated development. 

Associated development can include development in Wales and in the territorial sea, and whether development should be treated as associated development will vary on a case-by-case basis. Associated development would otherwise be subject to other consenting routes such as a planning application or marine licence.

Associated development is additional development that helps the main SIP and is needed for the project to run smoothly. Sometimes, it is hard to separate what is part of the SIP and what counts as associated development, as some works might be both. Generally, associated development will:

1. Have a direct relationship to the development.
2. Be subordinate to the development
3. Be proportionate to the nature and scale of the development.
4. Be typical of development brought forward alongside the relevant type of development.

As far as practicable, applicants should cover in their explanatory memorandum, and other supporting documents, which parts (if any) of their proposal are associated development and why it is necessary.

Applicants can choose what associated development to include in their application and may apply for associated development separately. Any associated development should be included in the application from the outset, including development located away from the SIP. This helps make sure the whole proposal is considered together. 

Where the application includes associated development, assessments should consider the impacts alongside the rest of the application to ensure that it identifies the total impact of the proposal. This includes any requests for screening, scoping opinions, or appropriate assessments. Where applicants want to apply for separate consent for associated development, they should be aware this work might still be considered part of ‘the project’ for the purposes of EIA. Factors which indicate this are:

• common ownership: where two sites are owned or promoted by the same person, this may indicate that they constitute a single project
• functional interdependence: where one part of a development could not function without another, this may indicate that they constitute a single project
• stand-alone projects: where a development is justified on its own merits and would be pursued independently of another development, this may indicate that it constitutes a single individual project that is not an integral part of a more substantial scheme.

Examples of the type of development that may qualify as associated development may include: 

• access arrangements, including creating or modifying access routes (both temporary and permanent), bridges/tunnels, and infrastructure for roads, railways, waterways, and parking needed for the project
• connections (lines), and apparatus to connect to national networks, including electricity networks, water/wastewater infrastructure, fuel and pipeline, and telecommunications networks
• other infrastructure, including maintenance or storage sites, staff accommodation, security measures, boreholes, fuel depots, logistics/distribution centres, the creation of associated working sites, site offices, drainage, and flood defences
• development undertaken to mitigate impacts, including landscaping, fencing, the provision of replacement land or open space, flood and coastal defences, environmental mitigation measures, and the creation of nature conservation areas and noise barriers.

This list is illustrative, and associated development will depend on the proposed project. Where associated development is novel, clear justification should be presented in the supporting documents.