Regulation of industrial pollution
Salford City Council regulates emissions to atmosphere from a number of industrial processes/installations. This is a statutory requirement under Part 1 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 and the Pollution Prevention and Control (England and Wales) Regulations 2000.
- Industrial Pollution Control Regimes
- Prescribed Industrial Processes/Installations in Salford
- Regulation Industrial Emissions by Salford City Council
INDUSTRIAL POLLUTION CONTROL REGIMES
Who controls air pollution from industrial processes?
Part 1 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 introduced a two tier system for pollution control comprising integrated pollution control (IPC) and local air pollution control (LAPC), with the Environment Agency and Local Authorities responsible for regulation of air pollution from industrial processes.
However new pollution control regimes have been introduced under the Pollution Prevention and Control Act 1999 and the Pollution Prevention and Control (England and Wales) Regulations 2000, which will replace the pollution control regime set up under Part 1 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990. This transitional process will be completed by 2007.
Part 1 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 (EPA 1990)
Part 1 of the EPA 1990 introduced the systems of Integrated Pollution Control (IPC), which controlled releases to air, water and land, and Local Air Pollution Control (LAPC) which controlled releases to air only.
By 2007 Part 1 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 will be revoked and replaced by the Pollution Prevention and Control (England and Wales) Regulations 2000. Currently processes are transferring from the EPA to the PPC regime.
Integrated Pollution Control (IPC)
The Environment Agency is the regulator for IPC, with powers to control solid, liquid and gaseous emissions from land, air and water from a range of complex and polluting industries known as ‘Part A’ prescribed processes.
Local Air Pollution Control (LAPC)
The local Authority is the regulator for LAPC, with powers to control emissions to atmosphere from a range of small industrial processes known as ‘Part B’ prescribed processes.
Pollution Prevention and Control (England and Wales) Regulations 2000 (PPC 2000)
The Pollution Prevention and Control Regulations introduce three separate but linked systems of pollution control:
1.Environment Agency Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control (IPPC), which covers installations known as A1 installations.
2.Local Authority Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control (LA-IPPC) which covers installations known as A2 installations.
3.Local Authority Pollution Prevention and Control (LAPPC), which covers installations known as Part B installations
All three systems require the operators of certain industrial and other installations to obtain a Permit to operate. A1 installations are generally perceived to have a grater potential to pollute the environment than an A2 installation, and Part B installations would have the least potential to pollute.
The Solvent Emissions (England and Wales) Regulations 2004
These use the existing pollution control regime set out under the PPC Regulations 2000 to deliver the requirements of the Solvent Emission Directive. As a result, the transitional provisions in the PPC Regulations 2000 are being adjusted to ensure that in the majority of cases the PPC and the SED application requirements are combined.
The Solvent Emissions Directive (SED or the Directive) requires all installations carrying out activities listed in Annex I which are operated above the solvent consumption thresholds specified in Annex IIA to comply with certain emission limit values.
The majority of installations covered by the Directive are already regulated under either the Pollution Prevention and Control Regulations 2000 (the PPC Regulations 2000) or Part I of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 (the EPA 1990).
PRESCRIBED INDUSTRIAL PROCESSES/INSTALLATIONS IN SALFORD
How many prescribed industrial processes are there in Salford?
In January 2006 there were 82 ‘Part B’ industrial processes regulated by Salford City Council in the following sectors:
In September 2005, there were 14 ‘Part A’ industrial installations regulated by the Environment Agency in the Salford area.
What information is available to the public?
A public register is available detailing all industrial processes/installations in the Salford area regulated by Salford City Council and the Environment Agency. The Public register is located at Turnpike House, 631 Eccles New Road, Salford. It is available during normal office hours (08:30 – 16:30), for inspection by the public free of charge. It is advisable to book an appointment to view the public register, please phone: 0161 737 0551 (ask for Environmental Protection) or email: airquality@salford.gov.uk
REGULATION INDUSTRIAL EMISSIONS BY SALFORD CITY COUNCIL
How does Salford City Council Regulate emissions to atmosphere from new Industrial Processes?
Under the PPC regulations 2000 operators of Part A2 and Part B installations require a Permit to operate and must submit a detailed application. Salford City Council is required to either grant or refuse the permit application.
Once Salford City Council approves an application a permit will be granted to the person or Company that has applied to operate the installation.
Operators must use the Best Available Techniques (BAT) to control pollution from their industrial activities. The aim of BAT is to prevent, and where that is not practicable, to reduce to acceptable levels, pollution to air, land and water from industrial activities in Part A2 installations and to reduce to acceptable levels pollution to air in Part B installations. BAT also aims to balance the cost to the operator against benefits to the environment.
The permit issued by Salford City Council will contain conditions on emission limits and controls, monitoring of emissions and abatement plant performance and good housekeeping etc. which must be complied with.
In setting permit conditions Salford City Council will refer to the relevant Process Guidance (PG) note/s issued by the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. Process Guidance Notes form statutory guidance on what constitute the Best Available Techniques (BAT) for each of the processes regulated.
Salford City Council will endeavour to ensure that operators of installations adhere to the standards of control as detailed in their Permit conditions and that installations are operated according to ‘BAT’. The LAPPC & LA Enforcement Policy (pdf 90.4kb) sets out the principles of regulation of prescribed processes employed by Salford City Council. Many businesses view the word ‘enforcement’ in terms of prosecution or some other form of financial penalty. However ‘enforcement’ has a far wider meaning: education; provision of advice; information; permitting; securing compliance with statutory requirements and finally the use of statutory enforcement powers.
What is the frequency of inspection of these processes?
Salford City Council complies with the Department of Environment Food and Rural Affairs LAPC + LAPPC Risk Assessment Method, Revised April 2004, in order to determine the frequency of inspection. The method assigns a level of proposed ‘regulatory effort’ to individual processes (High, Medium or Low) according to their relative risks. The method relates to effort expended in regulating processes once they have been authorised (i.e. what is covered by the subsistence element of the LAPC and LAPPC fees and charges).
The risk assessment is based upon both the nature of the process and the way in which it is managed. The overall risk assessment score determines the category of the process/ installation and hence the frequency of inspection.
Officers from Salford City Council, Environmental Protection then undertake inspections of installations to ensure that the permit conditions are being complied with.
Regulatory Effort
| Score | Category | Office Hours per year | Inspection/Visit |
| <40 | Low | 9 to 15 | One full inspection and extra Inspections as necessary |
| 40-80 | Medium | 18-30 | One full inspection and one check inspection and extra inspections as necessary |
| 80> | High | 27-45 | Two full inspections and one check inspection and extra inspections as necessary. |
How can I apply for a Permit?
If you are an operator of an installation where one or more industrial activities listed in Schedule 1 of the PPC Regulations are carried out, you will require one or more permits to operate / continue to operate.
You will need to apply for a permit from Salford City Council. A copy of the relevant application forms are available to download:
Part A2 Installations
| Part A2 Permit Application form (pdf 134Kb) |
| Part A2 Transfer Form (pdf 119Kb) |
| Part A2 Application for Variation of Permit Conditions (pdf 131Kb) |
| Part A2 Surrender Form (pdf 117Kb) |
Part B Installations
Your application must be submitted with the relevant application fee. These charges are set by the Secretary of State for the Department of Food and Rural Affairs, see the Fees and Charges section of defra's Pollution and Control web site, for the relevant application fee for your process.
Before you make an application you should obtain a copy of the relevant guidance notes for the activity / activities. The guidance notes are available from the Defra website:
This page was last updated on 31 October 2006
Email this page to a friend
Bookmark this page using:
Find out more about social bookmarking.
These sites allow you to store, tag and share links across the internet. You can share these links both with friends and people with similar interests. You can also access your links from any computer you happen to be using.
If you come across a page on our site that you find interesting and want to save for future reference or share it with other people, simply click on one of these links to add to your list.
All of these sites are free to use but do require you to register. Once you have registered you can begin bookmarking. Each of the sites works slightly differently so use the links below to find out which service best suits your needs.
Find out more about social bookmarking at Wikipedia.
