Environmental Law for the Construction Industry 2nd Edition

Contents

Chapter 1 The UK legal framework and the regulators 1

1.1. Introduction 1

1.2. Background to Environmental Law in the UK 1

1.3. Who is liable and tor what? 3

1.3.1. Criminal liability 4

Personal liability 6

Criminal sanctions 7

1.3.2. Civil liability 8

1.3.2.1. Liability in contract 9

1.3.2.2. Liability in tort 10

Nuisance 11

The rule in Rylands v. Fletcher 12

Negligence 13

Trespass to land 16

1.4. Who’s who in Environmental Law? 16

1.4.1. The Environment Agency 17

1.4.2. Local authorities 19

1.4.3. Local planning authorities 20

1.4.4. Water and sewerage undertakers 21

1.4.5. The Secretary of State tor the Environment,

Food and Rural Affairs 22

Chapter 2 The planning process 23

2.1. Introduction 23

ENVIRONMENTAL LAW

2.2. Planning applications, permissions and other consents 24

When planning permission is required 24

Who may make an application? 26

2.2.1. How to make an application 26

2.2.2. How the decision is made 28

PPGs 28

Development plans 29

2.2.3. Conditions and planning obligations.30

2.2.4. Highways and other agreements 32

2.2.5. Appeals 3.3

2.2.6. Enforcement of development controls 3.3

2.3. Planning and pollution control 35

Chapter 3 Environmental impact assessment 39

3.1. Introduction 39

3.2. Environmental impact assessment in practice 40

3.2.1. Whether an assessment is required 40

3.2.2. The environmental statement 42

3.2.3. Preparing statements 44

3.2.4. Submitting the statement 45

Chapter 4 Contaminated land 47

4.1. Introduction 47

4.2. The new statutory framework 50

The statutory basis of the new regime 50

The local authority’s duty to identify contaminated land 50

The remediation notice 51

Costs of compliance or non-compliance with remediation notice 53

4.3. Further statutory and non-statutory liabilities 54

Chapter 5 Waste management and the landfill tax 59

5.1. Introduction 59

5.2. Summary of the waste management regime 60

5.2.1. The definition of ‘waste’ 61

5.2.2. Special waste 65

CONTENTS

5.2.3. Waste Management Licences 67

5.2.4. Exemptions 70

5.2.5. Surrender of Waste Management Licences 74

5.2.6. The Duty of Gate 76

5.2.7. Transportation of waste 77

5.2.8. Criminal offences 78

5.3. The landfill tax 80

5.3.1. The regime 80

5.3.2. Exemptions from the landfill tax 82

5.4. Summary 84

Chapter 6 Water pollution 87

6.1. Introduction 87

6.2. Discharges into controlled waters 88

6.2.1. Watet discharge consents 88

6.2.2. Criminal offences 91

6.2.3. Defences 93

6.2.4. ‘Cause or knowingly permit’ 93

6.3. Anti-pollution works 96

6.4. Disposal of waste to sewers 98

Chapter 7 Site hazards and nuisances 101

7.1. Introduction 101

7.2. Site hazards 101

7.2.1. Dangers to the environment 101

7.2.2. Dangers to visitors 103

7.2.3. Dangers to employees 104

7.3. Statutory nuisance 106

7.3.1. The offence of statutory nuisance 106

7.3.2. Types of statutory nuisance 107

7.3.3. Enforcement procedure 108

7.3.4. Defences for non-compliance 110

7.3.5. Noise under the Control of Pollution Act 1974 111

Chapter 8 Insurance and lender liability 113

8.1. Introduction 113

ENVIRONMENTAL LAW

8.2. Environmental risks and traditional insurance policies 114

8.3 Environmental impairment liability insurance 121

8.4. Investment and lender liability 123

Chapter 9 Crisis management 129

9.1. Introduction 129

9.2. What is a crisis? 130

9.3. Managing an environmental crisis 130

9.4. Regulatory powers of enforcing authorities 133

9.5. Interviews under caution 136

9.6. Polluting incidents 139

9.6.1. Action to take on occurrence of polluting incident 139

9.6.2. Recording polluting incidents 140

9.6.3. Expert advice 141

9.7. Protester action and the environment 141

Before protesters enter site/obstruct transport 142

Once protesters are in situ 142

9.8. Environmental crisis management – a summary 146

Chapter 10 Proactive project planning 149

Pre-contract checklist 149

On-site checklist 151

Post-contract checklist 152

Table of statutes and European Council directives 153

Table of statutory instruments 155

Table of cases 157

Bibliography 159

Index 163