What this covers
Why you need it
Parliament created it. The power to require it comes from Environmental Protection Act 1990.
What the Act carries
What our graph holds for Environmental Protection Act 1990 as a whole — the Act behind this licence, not the licence conditions themselves.
- Duties on businesses
- 71
- Penalties
- 57
- Exemptions
- 27
Duties on businesses under the Act
- Do not obstruct authorised entry or disclose trade secrets Schedule 3
- Obtain an authorisation before running a prescribed industrial process s.6
- Use best available techniques to prevent or minimise environmental pollution s.7
- Notify the regulator after an environmental permit transfer s.9
- Fail to give name or address when required by authorised officer s.33ZB
- Fail to give name or address when required (or give false details) s.33ZA
… and 65 more business duties in the same Act.
What happens if you get it wrong
- Deposit substances or articles in the sea without a licence 2 years imprisonment
- Breach hazardous waste regulations 2 years imprisonment
- Breach restrictions on harmful substances or articles 2 years imprisonment
- Breach special waste regulations 2 years imprisonment
- Breach waste import or export regulations 2 years imprisonment
… and 52 more penalties in the same Act.
Exemptions that may take you outside it
- Abandoned mine owners exempt from water pollution remediation if abandoned before 2000 — Mine or part of a mine was abandoned on or before 31 December 1999
- Abandoned trolley seizure exemption for certain land types — Trolley is found on land owned by the trolley owner, or on designated off-street parking with trolley facilities, or on …
- Business processes regulated by radioactive substance permits take precedence — A business activity is regulated by both an environmental authorisation under this Act and a radioactive substances permit under the …
- Combined recycling collection allowed if separate collection is not viable — Separate collection is not technically or economically practicable, or has no significant environmental benefit
- Commercially confidential information can be excluded from public environmental registers — Information is commercially confidential (as determined by the enforcing authority or on appeal) and not required to be included by …
… and 22 more exemptions in the same Act.
Read our full dossier on Environmental Protection Act 1990
Who issues it
Your local council issues this. Councils apply the same statute but set their own fees, conditions and timescales.
Where to apply
Duty, penalty and exemption labels are Guvnor’s analysis of the enabling instrument, not the instrument itself. Fees, forms and conditions are set by the issuing authority — always check the linked source.