The Environmental Permitting Regulations (EPR) superceded the Pollution Prevention and Control (PPC) and Waste Management Licensing (WML) Regulations in England and Wales in 2010, and covers many industrial activities from chemicals to minerals, metals to food and drink. The requirements in Scotland are similar and are regulated under the Pollution Prevention and Control (Scotland) Regulations 2012, which came into force in 2013.

These regulations apply an integrated environmental approach to the regulation of certain industrial activities. This means that emissions to air, water (including discharges to sewer) and land, plus a range of other environmental effects, must be considered together.

Operators of installations that fall under the Regulations must have a permit in order to operate. Permit conditions are set with the aim of achieving a high level of protection for the environment as a whole. The operator must use Best Available Techniques (BAT) to prevent and minimise emissions, aiming to balance the costs to the operator against the benefits to the environment as much as possible.

There is a lot of guidance that has been issued by the Environment Agency (EA), the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) and others, but it can still be confusing knowing which parts apply to you, and which guidance you need to follow.

In some cases a site condition report is required to describe the condition of the land and groundwater at the site. It provides a baseline assessment of the condition of the land and enables an operator to demonstrate that they have caused no further pollution during the lifetime of the site and it is in a satisfactory state when they come to surrender their permit.

We can help with any aspect of EPR compliance. We can advise on the application of BAT at your facility, work with you to help prepare responses to actions or improvement conditions, or if changes are planned, we can prepare and submit applications for new permits and variations.