Environment Update June 2008
Text of new EU Waste Law approved - but you can’t please everyone
The European Parliament has voted to approve the revised Waste Framework Directive.
In procedural terms this speeds up the legislative process, meaning that the new Directive will become law soon.
Although the revised Directive will not enter into force until its formal publication, a provisional text is already available for perusal from the European Parliament.
The revised Directive will require Member States to achieve a 50% re-use and recycling target for certain household waste such as paper, metal, plastic and glass; and a 70% re-use and recycling target for non hazardous construction and demolition waste.
The Directive dictates that waste prevention and waste management policy and legislation should apply, in priority order, a five stage waste hierarchy. Waste prevention is considered as number one priority followed by re-use, recycling and recovery, and, as a last resort, disposal.
The Directive also attempts to lay down a clearer demarcation line between waste, by- products and substances which have undergone a recovery operation so as to achieve end of waste status.
Incineration, provided it meets certain energy efficiency criteria, will be classed as a recovery operation under the revised directive.
Whereas various organisations in the waste recycling and recovery industries have welcomed the revised directive, some environmental groups and organisations have voiced their disappointment at the absence of waste prevention targets, and at what they claim to be inadequate recycling targets. These organisations have also expressed dismay at the decision to class some incinerators as recovery operations, claiming such a decision will have a detrimental impact on both climate change and recycling targets. Furthermore, some of these groups have also criticised the definition of by-products introduced by the Directive claiming that it will allow many materials currently classified as waste to escape regulation.
The European Parliament Press release, together with a road map of the legislative progress of the revised Directive and the provisional text, as approved by the European Parliament, is available via the following links:-
European Parliament web link #1
European Parliament web link #2
Further comment is available via the links below:-
http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=IP/08/950
http://www.esauk.org/press/?release_id=150
http://www.bir.org/publications/news/detailednewspage.asp?NewsID=469
http://www.greens-efa.org/cms/pressreleases/dok/238/238643.waste_directive@en.htm
Planning to pollute? – EA has final say!
A group of Port Talbot residents concerned about an increase in levels of PM10 (coarse particulate matter and a recognised pollutant) resulting from the construction and operation of a power station have lost their court battle. They had challenged a decision by the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform to grant consent for the development of the 350 megawatt power station in their area.
The residents had objected on the basis that emissions from the power station itself and from additional associated traffic movement, together with existing high pollution levels in the area, was likely to have a detrimental effect on human health.
But the Court held that the consent and planning permission granted by the Secretary of State, to allow the construction of the power station, was insufficient on its own to bring the power station into operation. It would also need a permit from the Environment Agency under the Pollution Prevention and Control Regulations, and it would be for the EA to consider whether or not to grant a permit to operate on the basis of a number of factors including predicted pollution emission levels.
Although the Court acknowledged that air quality is capable of being a material planning consideration, it was their view that there already exists a regime to ensure the proper control of emissions from such operations.
The judge held that unless the Secretary of State considered that excessive pollution could not be controlled from the development, it was appropriate to leave the matter to the regulator, therefore the Court found that under the circumstances it was appropriate for the Secretary of State to grant consent and planning permission for the development of the power station leaving to the regulator the issue of controlling the emission of pollutants via the Pollution Prevention and control permit process.
The judgment in this case follows hot on the heels of the publication of the new European Air Quality Directive, which provides the legislative framework for improving Europe’s air quality.
The new Directive repeals the existing framework Directive on Ambient Air Quality and three of the four daughter directives which set out threshold values for a number of air pollutants.
The new Directive sets out threshold limits and target values for a number of pollutants, including particulate matter. In addition to imposing limits on the coarser PM10 particles the new directive introduces a limit for fine dust particles known PM2.5, one of the most dangerous air pollutants.
However, the Directive does allows Member states to postpone compliance with the PM10, and some other standards on the condition that appropriate measures have been taken and that an air quality plan is established.
Although Member States have two years in which to transpose the new directive, Member States must ensure that a sufficient number of PM2.5 monitoring stations are in place by January 2009.
The judgment of the High Court together and the text of the new European Air Quality Directive may be accessed via the following links:-
http://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWHC/Admin/2008/1257.html
Renewable Power Schemes face further delays
As if things weren’t already slow enough, new regulations, due to come into force later this year, will amend existing legislation, implementing the European Environmental Impact Assessment Directive in Scotland, with respect to applications to construct, operate and extend electricity generating facilities.
The new regulations will implement the European Directive on Public participation by amending existing consent procedures to provide for increased public participation.
The European Directive on Public Participation put into effect certain provisions of the Aarhus Convention on public participation in public decision making processes concerning environmental matters. However, national legislatures were supposed to put these provisions into effect by 25 June 2005.
The Scottish Government itself acknowledges that recent moves, encouraging more electricity generation to come from renewable sources, have resulted in a significant increase in the number of consent applications, which have, in turn, put pressure on the consenting process, resulting in consent applications taking an increasingly longer time to reach conclusion. However, they still state that a key objective of their streamlining measures is to increase the quality of applications through better public and community consultation.
The new regulations increase the amount of information within the notice to be published where an environmental statement is submitted to the Scottish Ministers; and, imposes new requirements on the publication of such notices. The regulations also set out a new procedure which the Scottish Ministers must follow upon receipt of additional information; and, provides for the form of the notice that an applicant submitting such additional information must publish.
The range of documents to be placed on the planning register is also widened as is the information to be included in the statement of the Scottish Ministers’ determination of the application. The new regulations also require the applicant to publish notice of the determination.
The Scottish Government states that, although it has committed itself to streamlining consent timescales for new applications through procedural and legislative changes, this must be balanced against European legislation which commits Member States to operate an open and fair assessment and consultation of large scale energy applications.
The text of the new regulations together with an explanatory memorandum is available via the following links:-
http://www.opsi.gov.uk/legislation/scotland/ssi2008/pdf/ssi_20080246_en.pdf
http://www.opsi.gov.uk/legislation/scotland/ssi2008/en/ssien_20080246_en.pdf
LANDLORDS – save money by going green
Residential landlords are to receive corporation tax breaks under new energy saving regulations which extend the Landlords Energy Saving Allowance (LESA) to residential property businesses eligible to pay corporation tax.
The Energy-Saving Items (Corporation Tax) Regulations 2008, which come into force in July, specify certain items which are to be classed as energy saving items and thus enabling landlords to deduct expenditure on acquiring and installing energy saving items in residential properties from their corporation tax liability.
Hot water system insulation, draught proofing, cavity wall insulation, solid wall insulation, floor insulation and loft insulation are specified as items of an energy-saving nature.
The Regulations restrict the maximum amount of expenditure for which a deduction is allowed to £1,500 per dwelling-house in each tax year and excludes contributions made by persons not entitled to a deduction.
The Regulations also provide for making apportionments where the relevant expenditure benefits more than one property and where a property is owned jointly or in common.
The text of the new regulations together with an explanatory memorandum is available via the following links:-
http://www.opsi.gov.uk/si/si2008/pdf/uksi_20081520_en.pdf
http://www.opsi.gov.uk/si/si2008/em/uksiem_20081520_en.pdf
Environmental ebulletin moves to fortnightly broadcast
Semple Fraser's environmental ebulletin will be broadcast fortnightly over the summer months, keeping you up to date with the latest news and issues affecting those involved in the various industries under the 'environment and pollution' umbrella.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT: FIONA ROSS