Environmental permitting of industrial processes
Trafford Council must by law regulate certain types of industrial process's and other activities such as petrol stations and dry cleaners. This is to reduce any pollution they may cause and, in particular, to help improve air quality.
Businesses which operate these premises in Trafford must have a permit issued by the Local Authority.
Relevant regulation
The law is contained in the Environmental Permitting (England and Wales) Regulations 2007, statutory instrument number 2007/3538.
Premises regulated by the local authority may be 'Part A2' or 'Part B'.
The Part B system is known as Local Authority Pollution Prevention and Control (LAPPC). The A2 system is Local Authority Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control (LA-IPPC).
Which installations are regulated?
Local authorities deal with about 80 different types of installation. Glassworks and foundries, rendering plant and maggot breeders, petrol stations and concrete crushers, sawmills and paint manufacturers, are among the sorts regulated.
Regulations say exactly which installations need a permit. The list of industrial processes requiring permits are available below:
Other installations are regulated by the Environment Agency. They are usually larger or more complex.
How are they regulated?
Getting a permit
The operator of one of these installations must apply for a permit. He or she must pay a fee for doing so.
The application form is available on the DEFRA website.
The Regulations say what information must be in the application. The local authority must consider the application to decide whether or not to approve it. The authority must consult relevant members of the public and other organisations. If the authority decides to issue a permit, it must include conditions. These conditions will say how pollution is to be minimised.
The Government has published guidance for each type of installation. This says what are likely to be the right pollution standards. Under the law, the standards must strike a balance between protecting the environment and the cost of doing so. The authority must by law have regard to that guidance. The authority must also consider local circumstances.
If the authority decides to refuse a permit, a business can appeal to the Government. A business can also appeal if it has received a permit but does not agree with any of the conditions.
How will the application be reviewed
Applications must be sent to Trafford Council for installations situated in the Trafford Area.
Applications must be on the prescribed form and accompanied by:
- The appropriate fee
- Details of the operator
- Site maps
- A written description of the installation
- Categorisation of emissions to atmosphere
- Describe the proposed measures for monitoring all identified emissions
- Provide detailed procedures and policies of your proposed environmental management techniques
- Is there any information in the application that you wish to justify being kept from the public register on the grounds of commercial or industrial confidentiality?
Advertising the application
Applicants will be required to advertise their application in the local press:
Applications can also be made to vary, transfer or surrender a permit.
Duly-made applications
Once an authority has confirmed that everything is in place to determine an application the local authority should acknowledge to the operator that the application is duly-made and is being processed.
Determination by local authorities for A2 applications
The local authority should determine a duly-made application within 4 months of its submission (Schedule 5, paragraph 15 of the EP Regulations.
If successful, the applicant is notified of the determination and a copy of the permit is placed on the public register including decision document.
If the permit is refused the local authority has to be provide justifiable reasons. The applicant may appeal the decision to the secretary of state.
Determining LAPPC (Part B) applications
The timescale can be up to four months.
The determination period for dry cleaners and small waste oil burners is 3 months.
If successful, the applicant is notified of the determination and a copy of the permit is placed on the public register including decision document.
If the permit is refused the local authority has to be provide justifiable reasons. The applicant may appeal the decision to the secretary of state
Further guidance and relevant forms for the application and appeals procedure are available on the DEFRA website.
Will tacit consent apply?
No. It is illegal to operate a permitted process without a permit being issued.
No new installation or substantial change to an existing installation may be operated without a permit or variation. It is an offence under EP regulation 38(1)(a) to operate a regulated facility without a permit and to the extent authorised by that permit.
In the event that new categories of activity are subsequently added by future amendments to the EP Regulations, those amendment Regulations are likely to include deadlines by which applications must be made for new and existing installations.
If you have not heard from us within a reasonable period, please contact us.
After a permit is given
Once a permit is issued, the operator must comply with the permit conditions and pay an annual charge. This covers local authority costs of checking the permit is complied with.
Local authorities rate installations as high, medium or low risk. This is based on two things. First, what the environmental impact would be if something went wrong. Second, how reliable and effective the operator of the installation is. The annual charge is lower for low- and medium-risk installations. The risk rating of the installation will decide the number of inspections it receives in a year.
How much is application and annual subsistence fee
There is an application fee and a subsistence fee which must be paid yearly for each installation.