Defra, the Welsh Assembly Government and the Environment Agency are undertaking a review of the waste exemptions from environmental permitting. The aim of the review is to provide a more risk based and proportionate approach to the regulation of waste recovery and disposal operations, complementing the new environmental permitting regime.
The consultation includes a number of […]

These Regulations amend the Stamp Duty Land Tax (Zero-Carbon Home Relief) Regulations 2007, which provide relief from stamp duty land tax on the first acquisition of a dwelling which is a zero-carbon home in accordance with the Finance Act 2003.
The amendments made by regulation have effect in relation to acquisitions made on or after 1st […]

The Town and Country Planning (Environmental Impact Assessment) (England and Wales) Regulations 1999 implemented, in England and Wales, Council Directive 85/337/EEC (”the EIA Directive”) on the assessment of the effects of certain public and private projects on the environment as amended by Council Directive 97/11/EC. The EIA Directive was also amended by Council Directive 2003/35/EC.
The […]

This Order amends the Capital Allowances (Environmentally Beneficial Plant and Machinery) Order 2003, substituting new definitions of “the Water Technology Criteria List” and “the Water Technology Product List”.
The Order also amends some of the descriptions of the environmentally beneficial plant and machinery technology classes to reflect the names of the qualifying technology classes in the […]

Defra issued revised lists of criteria and products eligible for Enhanced Capital Allowances on 16 July 2008, and these took effect on 11 August.
Enhanced Capital Allowances (ECAs) enable a business to claim 100% first-year capital allowances on their spending on qualifying plant and machinery. There are three schemes for ECAs:
• Energy-saving plant and machinery
• Low […]

The Batteries and Accumulators (Placing on the Market) Regulations 2008 will come into force on 26 September 2008 with an aim to reduce the environmental impact that batteries have on the environment. The new Regulations partially implement the Batteries Directive (Directive 2006/66/EC) and will set strict levels of mercury and cadmium that batteries will be […]

This Order makes provision as to the constitution and procedures of the London Waste and Recycling Board (LWaRB) established under the Greater London Authority Act 1999.
The aspiration for the LWaRB is that it will engender improvements in the environmental sustainability of waste management across London. The Board will be an eight member board to be […]

The Community Emissions Trading Scheme (Allocation of Allowances) Scheme (”The Scheme”), setting out the conduct and terms of allocation of allowances in the UK’s auctions in Phase II of the EU ETS, was published by HM Treasury on 29 July 2008.
The Scheme sits below the Regulations governing auctions and sets out the conduct and terms […]

Defra are seeking comments and information from interested parties on the UK Government and Devolved Administrations’ draft report to the European Commission on plans and programmes to meet EU ambient air quality limit values.
Under the Air Quality Framework Directive (1996/62/EC), when air quality limit values (plus a margin of tolerance) are exceeded a member state […]

The Export and Import of Dangerous Chemicals Regulations 2008 came into force on 3 September 2008 for the whole of the UK. These Regulations make provision for the operation of Regulation (EC) No 689/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council concerning the export and import of dangerous chemicals, in particular their enforcement and […]