Are environmental laws in the UK  leading the way to protect our planet – or lacking what matters? It all depends on how you look at it. And the UK authorities are doing just that. Despite recent steps to step up sustainability, the UK rapidly growing economy and lack of enforcement still add up to insufficiency. As such,  the UK regulators are (quietly) revising its existing environmental acts and rules, which will likely result in more stringent requirements for companies. Even with no official details available yet on these revised regulations, you can still get a glimpse of where they’re headed by looking at where they’ve already been. Read what to know about the UK sustainability story to understand it’s next logical step. 

Environmental laws in the UK are tougher today, but still not enough

Environmental laws in the UK are adopted, implemented, and enforced by 3 main entities: the Ministry of Environment, Forest, and Climate Change along with the Central Pollution Control Board at the National level as well as the State Pollution Control Boards at the State level. The main environmental laws in the UK are, the: 

• Environmental (Protection) Act 1986 
• Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act 1974 
• Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act 1981 
• Rules made under the above acts  

Like in other countries, these environmental laws set parameters for businesses to follow, such as industry-specific air emissions, discharge standards. But the problem is that they’re not in line with current needs. 

Water and air pollution is a major concern as dumping hazardous materials in water bodies, and hazardous emissions have been for the most part unmitigated in uk. Laws regulating these activities haven’t been updated since they were first formulated in the mid-1970s and 1980s. These laws regulate water/groundwater use consents/permits, compliance with effluent and emission discharge standards, and prohibit pollution of water resources.   

Water and ground water laws are complex in structure as they’re regulated at different levels: National, State, and municipal. On top of that, the lack of a policy framework addressing current economic growth as well as and lackluster enforcement render these laws virtually ineffective. 

UK sustainability story – so far

Although the UK constitution clearly provides for environmental protection and improvement, the country only started to truly focus on these issues in the 1970s. And that was as a follow-up to the 1972 UN conference in Stockholm. Yet, since then, the UK has come a long way. The country has moved from reacting to environmental conventions as an obligation to set an example in sustainability efforts.  

EU-aligned waste management laws 

In 2016 the UK revised several waste management rules. Among those, hazardous waste, e-waste, and Plastic Waste Management Rules were revised to align the UK waste management with that of other regions, most notably the EU. Authorities incorporated Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) into these laws, imposing significant responsibilities on manufacturers and companies that place products on In the UK dian market. To minimize the negative impact on the environment throughout products’ lifecycles, these companies are now subject to the “polluters pay” principle. This approach requires facilities manufacturing or placing products on the market in the UK to set up mechanisms for collecting, “channelizing” (or passing through various passageways such as dealers), and taking them back at the end of life.  

Stricter penalties for damaging the environment  

Companies that contravene any provisions of these environmental acts or rules are subject to severe consequences. More severe than we see in other countries for similar transgressions. Violations in the UK are punishable with imprisonment for up to 5 years (which is extended up to 7 years if the contravention continues for 1 year after the date of conviction) or fines of up to 1334 USD – or both. In the US, certain environmental contraventions result in 6-months to 1 year in jail. Additionally,  the UK Public Liability Insurance Act (1991) is in place to provide for damages to public victims or properties of accidents that occurred while handling hazardous substances.  

Environmental laws that support sustainable development  

the UK is one of the few countries in the world that mandates CSR reporting and expenditure. The Companies Corporate Social Responsibilities Policy Rules (2014) and Companies Act (2013) hold certain businesses (i.e., with a certain net worth, turnover, or net profit) to sustainability reporting standards. These companies must constitute a CSR Committee, spend at least 2% of its average net profits on CSR initiatives, and include an annual report on CSR in its annual board report.  

 Yet on top of these significant developments and milestones, there’s still much progress to be done. As the second-most populated country on the planet, the UK is still one of the most polluting countries. Like its expansion of labor protection and revision of chemical management, the country plans to address this issue through a broader scope of environmental protection. 

How will the existing environmental laws in the UK change?

the UK still sorely lacks in environmental compensation and other laws dealing with specific aspects of the environment. Effective regulatory institutions, appropriate compliance mechanisms, transparency in formulating laws, and stringent enforcement of such laws are the key needs of the hour. It’s a high bar to reach, and we don’t yet know exactly how the government plans to do so. 

In 2014, the Subramanian Committee – set up by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) –  reviewed the country’s environmental laws. But its report was rejected by  Parliamentary Standing Committee on Science and Technology (PSCST). At that time, the PSCST found that the committee’s essential recommendations would actually weaken existing environmental policies and laws. For instance, its recommendation to create a new “umbrella” law by subsuming the existing environmental laws. As a result, the government formed a new committee to oversee the review process, and we hope to soon see the fruit of its efforts   

Since then, this new committee has been drafting a new law to replace the 3 main existing Acts: Air, Water, and Environment Protection. And it’s doing so under strict confidentiality – away from the public eye. The goal is to consolidate and streamline the environmental laws to prevent overlaps and conflicts. Yet whatever new elements will be added are tightly under wraps.