Environmental Permitting

If your operation is sited within 200 meters of the above mentioned sites then you will not meet the rules for the standard permit, you will have to apply for a bespoke permit.

Bespoke Permits

If you are not on the List of Standard Permits then you will have to apply for a Bespoke Environmental Permit, things get a lot more complicated here, you can ring or email for a free initial consultation.

1 - Find Out which Permit You Need

First look through a list of environmental permits and see which one best fits your activity, are some permits descriptions are quiet obvious, for if you are windrow composting the you will probably need an open windrow composting permit. Some operation may require a bespoke permit.

However if you have a yards where you sort segregated rubbish, before it is sent of site for further treatment what kind of permit is that? Waste Transfer Environmental Permit but depending on your waste types and the how the site is operated would it count as an SR2008No1 or an SR2008No2?

You may only need an exemption.

My Environmental Permit is Not Duly Made, what does that mean?

Duly made checks are perhaps the one of the worst aspects of the permitting system, they can be used to endlessly delay the the progress of your application, often with Junior Officers, making ill informed decisions on non-material content. Why Environmental Permitting Application Process is so Terrible.  The internal document used by the EA with a list of duly made checks used to be one side of A4, with only basic checks. This checklist has now expanded to 15 sides of A4, and is a major obstruction to getting an environmental permit granted.

"Assessing whether an application is duly made is not a detailed technical evaluation*. We should not make a judgment about the merits of the operator’s proposals at this stage. For example, it may be clear from an application that a permit is unlikely to be granted because the environmental effects would be unacceptable. This would not stop the application being duly made. The fact that the environmental impacts would be unacceptable should result in us refusing the application (or imposing conditions to mitigate the environmental impact) rather than us considering that the application is not complete."

*It is a detailed evaluation. Once an application is in determination (the next step after duly making) the EA have 8 week to issue the permit. This is why they have shifted lots of the checks that used to be carried out at determination on to duly making, it takes the pressure off. A bit naughty really.

When you submit your permit to the Environment Agency they will carry out an initial check to see whether or not you have included all of the necessary information needed. The information required to get you application duly made changes with each type of permit. For example:

Composting Permit: Will require as a minimum the following documents.

- Site Condition Report
- Odour Management Plan
- Environmental Management System

A Recovery Activity Permit Such as as the ones listed below:

My Environmental Permit is in the Determination Stage, what is that?

Once your Environmental Permit Application has been "Duly Made" it will enter the determination stage. This involves the checking of the submitted information with a fine toothed comb, looking at figures and verifying the integrity of the submitted documents.

Content of documents may be called in to question, inadequacies in the quality of data may be highlighted. 99% of the time all will be well and the permit will be issued within a few weeks . . . (Update 2018): this used to be the case. . . Permits Typically Take a Long Time to be Issued.

The Determination Stage of a permit application the process of validating the submitted information, and assessing its "fit" within the chosen area of the proposed permitted site.

Where will SWEL undertake environmental permitting work?

SWEL have offices in London, Bristol and Exeter and will undertake environmental permitting work throughout the UK.

Carbon Capture and Storage Environmental Permit

Despite the growth in renewable as a percentage of our energy mix, in the UK there is a very large gap emerging as our demand for energy grows and no new power stations are being built. There is a much publicised need to lower the carbon intensity of our electricity supply, yet with we still rely on fossil fuels greatly.

One way to decrease the carbon intensity of the UK's grid electricity is to install carbon capture devices on existing fossil fuel power stations such as coal, oil and gas. In order to install one of these retro fit mitigation system the operator will require an Environmental Permit.

SWEL have been helping companies obtain environmental permits right from the start of the EPR regime, and are well placed to provide a efficient and cost effective environmental permit application service. More Information on Carbon Capture and Storage Environmental Permits.

How many Weeks does an Environmental Permit Application Take?

The below table shows the time for permit application. However, it should be borne in mind that when the application is submitted it may not be "picked up" for around a month, so for real world timings add a month to the below. Our record time is 6 weeks, our longest application was over year!

Transfer or partial transfer  >>>>>Two months

Standard permit (other than installations) >>>>>>> Three months

Mobile plant permit  >>>>>> Three months

Variations (without public consultation) >>Three months

Surrender or partial surrender >>>>>Three months

Applications with public consultation >>>>>> Four months

·         standard permit for installations;

·         bespoke permit; and

·         variations

Environmental Permit Consultants Bristol

Environmental Permit Consultants Exeter

Environmental Permit Consultants London

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Environmental Permit Consultants

Bristol - 01173 270 092

Exeter - 01398 331 258

London - 02076 920 670