The Mayor's Ambient Noise Strategy - Greater London Authority

The Mayor’s Ambient Noise Strategy Mayor of London 159
4E industrial noise
4E.1 Manufacturing output per head is higher in London than in the UK. Many
older and noisier industrial activities have left the city, closed, or been
replaced with modern, higher productivity processes. Estimates for the
London Plan 1 were that some 322,250 people, or 7.2% of the total, were
employed in manufacturing in 2001. This was projected to fall to 240,000,
or 4.7% of the jobs total, over the plan period to 2016.
4E.2 It was estimated that in 1998, London had some 6,900 hectares of industrial
land. 2 14% was vacant, together with 1.8 million square metres of vacant
industrial floorspace. The interface between remaining industry and new
noise-sensitive uses will need to be given careful attention wherever
selective release of industrial land occurs. 3 Existing and prospective noise
from transport also needs to be considered, to ensure that it is, as far as
possible, the quieter sites that are released for noise-sensitive uses (see
particularly paragraphs 4C.32-36 and Policy 45). Since 1994, policy has been
guided by a Strategic Employment Locations framework. This takes account
of industry’s needs in terms of clustering, capacity, environment, accessibility
and cost through two basic types of location: Preferred Industrial Locations
(PILs) - lower cost, often space extensive premises where environment is not
a major constraint; and Industrial Business Parks (IBPs) - higher quality,
usually more expensive, and sometimes higher density. It is important to
London’s future noise environment that space for potentially noisy activities
remains available in PILs. Noise-sensitivity needs to be a key part of deciding
where wholesale distribution and servicing-related uses are located, having
special regard to any night loading and unloading.
Figure 22 Strategic Employment Locations