Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
considers applications on a case-by-case basis. An applicant who disagrees with the
Forestry Agency's opinion may apply to the relevant SoS for a direction. The contents
required of an EIA under the Forestry Regulations are almost identical to those required
under the T&CP Regulations.
3.6
Summary and conclusions on changing legislation
The original (and amended) EC EIA Directive has been implemented in the UK through
an array of regulations that link those involved—developers, affected parties, regulators
and facilitators—in a variety of ways. The T&CP (EIA) Regulations are central. Other
regulations cover projects that do not fall under the English and Welsh planning systems,
such as motorways and trunk roads, power stations, pipelines, land drainage works,
forestry projects, and development projects in Scotland and Northern Ireland. In addition,
other planning legislation, currently the Planning and Compensation Act 1991, allows
other projects not listed in the Directive to be subject to EIA.
The original UK Regulations had a number of weaknesses, relating to the range of
projects included in the ambit of the EIA procedures, approaches to screening, scoping,
consideration of alternatives, mandatory and discretionary EIS content, public
consultation and others. Directive 97/11/EC sought to address some of these issues which
had arisen in the UK and other Member States. The UK Government response was
generally positive to the implementation of the finally agreed, and compromised,
amendments (DETR 1997a, b):
The Government believes that the Directive represents a significant
improvement on the original, particularly in clarifying a number of
ambiguities. The new measures should improve the consistency with
which the environment is taken into account in major development
decisions throughout the Community. At the same time, the Directive
offers Member States sufficient flexibility to achieve this without adding
unnecessarily to bureaucracy of burdens on developers… wherever
possible, new measures will be incorporated into existing procedures.
(DETR 1997a)
The new UK Regulations replicate even more closely the now four annexes of the
amended EC Directive. This has brought a wider array of projects into the UK EIA
system, has increased the number of mandatory categories and has led to a growth in EIA
activity and EIS output. Screening procedures have been developed, and the
consideration of scoping and alternatives now have a higher profile. There has been some
rationalization of legislation, but the array is still complex. EIA guidance is a particular
strength of the UK system, and government publications (especially the relevant circulars
and the Guide to the Procedures, DETR 1999, NAFW 1999, SEDD 1999 and DETR
2000) help to navigate the legislative array.
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