consultations

19th January 2018

DEFRA consulting on introduction of the Offshore Environmental Civil Sanctions Regulations 2018. 

DEFRA is consulting on introduction of the Offshore Environmental Civil Sanctions Regulations 2018.  Consultation closes 15th February.  It is proposed to introduce powers, via The Offshore Environmental Civil Sanctions Regulations 2018, to enable the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy’s Offshore Petroleum Regulator for Environment & Decommissioning (OPRED) to impose civil sanctions in respect of breaches of some existing offshore oil and gas environmental regulations, which presently amount to criminal offences.

The proposed sanctions would apply to offshore oil and gas operators engaged in hydrocarbon-related activities (i.e. oil and gas operations, gas unloading and storage operations and carbon dioxide storage operations) on the United Kingdom Continental Shelf. https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/the-proposed-introduction-of-the-offshore-environmental-civil-sanctions-regulations-2018

15th January 2018

DEFRA consultation on waste crime reduction

DEFRA is consulting on reducing crime at sites handling waste, and introducing fixed penalties for waste duty of care.  Consultation closes 26th March.   Changes being considered include enforcing more appropriate competence standards for permitted waste site operators and variations to waste exemptions to prevent them being used to hide illegal activity. The introduction of a fixed penalty for householders failing to pass their waste to authorised waste carriers is also proposed. https://consult.defra.gov.uk/waste/crime-and-poor-performance-in-the-waste-sector/.

9th January 2018

DEFRA consultation on enforcement of Alien Species Regs.

DEFRA is consulting on a regime to enforce the EU Invasive Alien Species Regulation in England and Wales.  Consultation closes 3rd April. The EU Invasive Alien Species Regulation (EU 2014/1143) came into force in 2015. It currently applies restrictions on forty-nine invasive non-native species of most concern in Europe including a ban on keeping and sale. This consultation sets out proposals for enforcing those restrictions through the use of civil and criminal penalties.  https://consult.defra.gov.uk/natural-environment-policy/invasive-non-native-species-enforcement/