Environmental Damage Regulations

The Environmental Damage (Prevention and Remediation) Regulations 2009 brought the requirements of the Environmental Liability Directive (Directive 2004/35/EC) into national law in England. They came into force on 1st March 2009 and introduce new obligations on many businesses, to prevent or put right any environmental damage they are responsible for.

Existing liability regimes in the UK still apply and where they impose additional obligations to those in these Regulations, will still need to be complied with.

Not all types of damage are ‘environmental damage’, only:

• damage to protected species and natural habitats or in a site of special scientific interest
• damage to water
• land damage 

Find out more information about the Regulations. 

How will the regulations affect my business? 

The Regulations are a ‘backstop’, only applying where something has gone wrong and there is an imminent threat or actual ‘environmental damage’.

By making sure that you already have appropriate pollution prevention measures to reduce risks to the environment in place, you can reduce the likelihood of ever being caught by the Regulations. An important first step is to comply with existing legislation.

Do I need insurance?

Insurance is not compulsory but you should check your existing policies. Where necessary, consider extending them or taking out other financial guarantees to cover any potential liabilities for damage to the environment.

What are my obligations as an operator?

If you are the operator of an economic activity and this activity causes some damage or a risk of damage to the environment, you must take immediate action to prevent it getting any worse. You must then notify the Enforcing Authority straight away - the enforcing authority are not responsible for the clean up. 

Failure to comply with the requirements of the Regulations may mean that you will be found to have committed an offence and penalties may apply.

If you are not sure whether environmental damage has occurred, you are advised to take the precautionary approach and take immediate action anyway and then inform the Enforcing Authority. They will be able to advise you on what needs to be done next.

What is an operator?

The operator is the person, or company, who controls an activity, or who is in charge of it. Some activities may have more than one operator.

What is an economic activity?

This term covers a variety of activities. It includes businesses and many charitable and public sector activities. Purely domestic or recreational activities are not covered.

Who are the enforcing authorities?

They are the bodies responsible for enforcing the regulations. In general terms they are:

• Environment Agency in relation to water damage
• Natural England in relation to biodiversity
• Local Authorities in relation to land damage

If it is not possible to provide all details immediately, do not delay in contacting the Enforcing Authority; any additional information can be provided at a later date. If you are unsure which is the Enforcing Authority, any authority in Annex 11 of the Guidance can be contacted.

Fnd out more about which enforcing authority to contact.

The role of enforcing authority

Once the authority is aware of a potential case, it must establish if it is ‘environmental damage’, identify a responsible operator and oversee the effective operation of the Regulations. It is not the enforcing authority’s duty to carry out the clean up – the “polluter pays” principle applies.

Reporting land damage

If you are an Operator you must take immediate steps to prevent damage or further damage – do not wait until you have spoken to Colchester Council.

If you wish to report potential Environmental Damage to the Council, or if you are concerned about environmental damage being caused by someone else, please contact us as soon as possible by emailing customerservicecentre@colchester.gov.uk.