Members of climate change agreements (CCAs) receive discounts on the climate change levy paid on energy supplied in return for subscribing to negotiated emissions reduction targets.
The Climate Change Agreements (Administration) (Amendment and Related Provision) Regulations 2016 amend the Climate Change Agreements (Administration) Regulations 2012.
What has been updated?
Companies failing to meet targets under climate change agreements between 1 January 2017 and 31 December 2019 will be required to pay an increased ‘buy-out’ fee of £14 for every tonne carbon dioxide equivalent the targets have been missed by. The buy-out fee is currently £12 per tonne carbon dioxide equivalent.
The Environment Agency has also been appointed as the administrator of the scheme.
These regulations came into force on 30 December 2016.
New publications this month:
ENVIRONMENT AGENCY
Environment Agency enforcement, sanctions and offences
This guidance document explains how the Environment Agency make enforcement decisions. The document has been updated to reflect changes in legislation from 1 January 2017.
Regulatory Position Statement (RPS) 36: Stack, store or treat litter, straw, manure and slurry arising from an exotic animal disease outbreak: RPS 36
Persons complying with this RPS may stack, store and treat infectious litter, straw, manure and slurry arising from an exotic animal disease outbreak without an environmental permit.
Oil storage regulations for businesses
Two more oil types have been added this guidance document: cutting fluids and insulating oils.
Packaging Waste
Packaging waste: become a packaging producer compliance scheme (PCS)
This guidance document has been updated to reflect the 2016 amendments to the producer responsibility regulations.
Packaging waste: producer responsibilities
The requirement to submit an operational plan no longer applies to packaging producers and this has now been reflected in this guidance document.
Packaging waste: apply to be an accredited reprocessor or exporter
Information on Agency Agreed Industry Grades and protocols have been updated.
Water Framework Directive
List of chemicals for Water Framework Directive assessments
This publication lists priority substances under the Water Framework Directive and Environmental Quality Directive. This list should be used during the water quality scoping stage of a Water Framework Directive assessment.
Water Framework Directive assessment: estuarine and coastal waters
This document provides guidance on how to assess the impact of an activity in esturine and coastal waters for the Water Framework Directive.
New offences this month:
Oxfordshire man guilty of running illegal waste operation
Geoffrey Parker from Oxfordshire has been found guilty of committing two environmental offences. He pleaded guilty at Reading Magistrates Court to holding waste illegally.
Environment Agency officers discovered illegal waste in over 40 skips which were scattered along the approaching lane to the site. In the yard area at the entrance to the site, environment officers saw a large amount of general household clearance type waste on a concrete pad, with more waste stacked up behind. Hazardous materials were also seen including car batteries, leaking paint pots and containers with chemicals in skips.
The firm was instructed to reduce the size of the pile, but it failed to meet the deadline, blaming staff illness.
The Environment Agency suspended the company’s permit in September, preventing it from bringing any more wood on to the site. This was later reinstated when the company agreed to reduce stocks on site.
A compliance visit found that all waste wood stacks had increased in size, and stacks that had previously been compliant had been combined to form larger piles.
The firm had previously committed offences.
Penalty
Mr Parker received a 4-month custodial sentence suspended for 1 year and was ordered to pay over £7,600. The Magistrates also made a remediation order (under Regulation 44 of the Environmental Permitting (England and Wales) Regulations 2010) which requires the removal of all waste from the farm and Cox’s Lane by the end of January 2017.
Teesside wood recycling firm fined for environmental permitting offences
UK Wood Recycling Ltd admitted keeping waste wood in a way likely to cause pollution to the environment or harm to human health. The company had significantly exceeded the maximum sizes stated for wood piles and lacked the recommended firebreaks as specified in guidance from the Environment Agency. This was the reason as to why a fire in 2013 had previously occurred.
BRE Global said the way the company had stored the wood piles were risky and made spontaneous combustion highly likely.
UK Wood Recycling Ltd were fined £72,000, ordered to pay costs of £71,335, and a victim surcharge of £120.
Company fined after chemical leak at Sunderland site
Tradebe Solvent Recycling Ltd has pleaded guilty to two offences of failing to comply with conditions under its environmental permit. Breaches resulted in a leak affecting groundwater when a hose was left fitted to a fixed storage tanker.
The company reported the spill immediately to the Environment Agency.
The Environment Agency found that the leak of 4000 litres of isopropyl alcohol, which had affected groundwater, was a result of deficient management systems and operating procedures. The court heard that Tradebe Solvent Recycling Ltd had not formally inspected pipes and operating procedures for the transfer of liquid chemicals were inadequate.
The company was fined £27,000 and ordered to pay costs of £11,960.
