- Enforced by
- Environment Agency, OEP, DEFRA
- Status
- In Force
- Penalty ceiling
- Imprisonment 5 of 12 obligations carry up to 2 years imprisonment. 7 have no criminal penalty — flagged in the list below.
Does it bind you?
Business-side roles with duties under this instrument.
Plus 3 duties on the regulator, Crown ministers and public bodies — folded into the section list below.
Other Acts binding the same actors
If a role above is yours, these are the other instruments that most often bind it.
Operator — also bound by 746 other Acts
Any Person — also bound by 2340 other Acts
Director or Officer — also bound by 429 other Acts
What it requires
Regulations creating concrete business duties or carrying penalties, grouped as the instrument is structured. Titles link to the source text — blue means you’re leaving for legislation.gov.uk.
Introductory Provisions
0 of 13 sections shown13 other sections in this Part — procedural and definitional
Preventing Environmental Damage
2 of 4 sections shown- Prevent and notify imminent environmental damageOperator
- Prevent and report further environmental damageOperator
2 other sections in this Part — procedural and definitional
Remediation
3 of 8 sections shownOther duties (1) — Crown / regulator
- Enforcing authority must determine if environmental damage has occurredStatutory regulator
Other duties (1) — Crown / regulator
- Regulator must notify you of liability for environmental damageStatutory regulator
- Propose remedial measures for environmental damageOperator
5 other sections in this Part — procedural and definitional
Administration, Enforcement and Review
7 of 12 sections shown- Pay the regulator's costs if they perform your environmental worksOperator
- Pay the regulator's administration and enforcement costsOperator
- Grant access for environmental repair works and claim compensationAny Person
- Fail to comply with authorised inspection instructions or give false informationAny Person
- Provide information to the enforcing authority upon requestOperator
- Breach environmental damage regulations or cause corporate negligenceDirector or Officer
Other duties (1) — Crown / regulator
- Secretary of State must review the Environmental Damage Regulations every 5 yearsCrown / Minister / Government department
5 other sections in this Part — procedural and definitional
Revocations
0 of 1 section shown1 other section in this Part — procedural and definitional
Schedules
0 of 56 shown56 other schedules
Help complying
Guvnor’s practical routes through this instrument.
Contamination discovered on your site
What to do when contamination is discovered during construction or building works. Covers immediate steps, reporting obligations, liability assessment, engaging regulators, and …
Developing contaminated or brownfield land
Complete guide to developing contaminated sites - from initial due diligence through site investigation, remediation, and verification. Covers both Part 2A and …
1 more guide that reference this instrument
Duty extraction and severity labels are Guvnor’s analysis of the instrument, not the instrument itself. Always verify against the linked source text.