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Jurisdiction: England
Commencement: 24th March 2020
Amends: The Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (England) Order 2015
The Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (England) Order 2015 grants planning permission for a range of predominantly minor developments, subject to certain limitations and conditions. This permission is commonly known as ‘permitted development rights.’
The 2015 Order grants planning permission for a range of specific classes of development for which a planning permission application does not need to be made. A new permitted development right is added by this amendment to the 2015 Order to allow restaurants and cafes (A3 class) and pubs (A4 class) to provide a takeaway or delivery service for food. This is to facilitate the access to food supplies for all members of the public.
This right ends on 23rd March 2021.
This amendment has no direct relevance to environmental matters.
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Jurisdiction: Republic of Ireland
Amends: The Infectious Diseases Regulations 1981
The Infectious Diseases Regulations 1981 list notifiable diseases which must be notified by certain healthcare professionals and laboratories to the Health Service Executive. There are no duties for general employers.
The Infectious Diseases Regulations 1981 are amended to add Covid-19 as a notifiable disease. The Schedule is updated.
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Jurisdiction: Republic of Ireland
Amends: Safety, Health and Welfare At Work (Carcinogens) Regulations 2001
The Safety, Health and Welfare At Work (Carcinogens) Regulations 2001 give effect to Council Directive 90/394/EEC on the protection of workers from the risks related to exposure to carcinogens and mutagens at work. Under the Regulations employers must carry out an assessment of the risks associated with the use of a carcinogen or mutagen in the work place, and take steps to control such risks by eliminating or minimising exposure.
The following amendments are made as a result of the adoption of:
The list of carcinogens that the Regulations apply to can now be found in Annex I of Directive 2004/37/EC on the protection of workers from the risks related to exposure to carcinogens or mutagens at work rather than as a list Schedule 1 which is therefore removed.
The limit values for occupational exposure for can now be found in Annex III of Directive 2004/37/EC rather than Schedule 2 in which they were previously listed which is also therefore removed.
A medical practitioner may now indicate the need for continued health surveillance after the end of exposure for as long as they consider it to be necessary, to safeguard the health of the employee concerned.
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Jurisdiction: EU
Commencement: Comes into force on the 30th of January 2020. Applies from the 1st of January 2020
Amends: Regulation (EC) No 1272/2008 on classification, labelling and packaging of substances and mixtures
Regulation (EC) No 1272/2008 on classification, labelling and packaging of substances and mixtures introduces a globally harmonised system of classification and labelling of chemicals into European law. It supplements the REACH Regulation for the registration, assessment, authorisation and restrictions concerning chemical substances. The Regulations require that substances and mixtures are classified according to the physical hazards, the health hazards or the environmental hazards that they create. They also detail the labelling and packaging requirements.
Amendments are made to article 25 (Supplemental information on the label) and article 29 (Exemptions from labelling and packaging requirements) to give additional clarification on where unique formula identifiers* (‘UFIs’) are to be placed on products.
* A unique formula identifier is a unique code of letters and numbers that links the information on the composition of a mixture or a group of mixtures to a specific mixture or group of mixtures.
Amendments are also made to Annex VIII (Harmonised information relating to emergency health response and preventative measures), which was introduced by Regulation (EU) 2017/542 amending Regulation (EC) 1272/200 on classification, labelling and packaging of substances and mixtures by adding an Annex on harmonised information relating to emergency health response (‘2017 Regulations’), in order to streamline its interpretation and mitigate some unintended consequences of its introduction.
Amendments are made to provide clarification on the placing on labels of UFIs. The places that a UFI can be displayed are:
Extension to the compliance date for consumer products
The deadline for submitters placing hazardous mixtures on the market for consumer use (as outlined in Annex VIII of Regulation (EC) 1272/2008) to start complying with the new rules has been extended from 1st January 2020 to 1st January 2021. This is to allow sufficient time to develop necessary solutions to unforeseen problems with the 2017 Regulations (e.g. the difficulty of knowing the exact composition of products in cases involving complex supply chains).
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Jurisdiction: England, Scotland, Wales
Commencement: 1st April 2020
Amends: The Environment Act 1995
The Environment Act 1995 carries very few direct requirements for businesses, but sets up the Environment Agency and Scottish Environment Protection Agency and contains duties for certain local authorities and other authorities. It is the foundation for many pieces of secondary legislation (Regulations and Orders).
Section 118(4) and (5) of the Environment Act 1995 (‘the Act’) relating to application to the Isles of Scilly are brought into force on the 1st April 2020. This means that the Act shall not apply in relation to the Isles of Scilly; however, the Secretary of State, after consultation with the Council of the Isles of Scilly, can make an Order to apply any relevant provisions of the Act if they decide to at any time.
These sections substitute section 222 of the Water Industry Act 1991 and section 224 of the Water Resources Act 1991, both of which relate to applying the provisions of the Act to the Isles of Scilly.
There are no changes in duties for organisations.
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Jurisdiction: Republic of Ireland
Commencement: 20th February 2020
This Act provides for the prohibition on the manufacture or placing on the market of certain products containing microbeads. Restrictions are also imposed for disposing of substances containing microbeads.
A microbead is classed as any water-insoluble solid plastic particle with a diameter less than 5mm.
A person shall not manufacture or place on the market a cosmetic product* or a cleaning product** that is water soluble and contains microbeads in excess of 0.01% of the weight of the product.
Anyone who deliberately manufacturers / places microbeads on the market is committing an offence. Where microbeads end up in products by mistake, if manufacturers can show they took all reasonable precautions to prevent microbeads to stop this from happening, this can be used as an acceptable defence.
*A cosmetic product is any substance or combination of substances produced to either clean, protect, maintain, change the appearance, or improve the condition of the skin, hair, nails, teeth or gums of a person.
**A cleaning product is a substance that is intended to be used in cleaning any surface or material. Such products include detergent, fabric softener, conditioner, bleaching agent or solvent.
The following products containing microbeads are to be exempt from this Act:
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) may approve bodies to become an approved body if the EPA is satisfied that it is a function of the body to engage in scientific research or carry out scientific examinations of substances.
Ministers may make additional regulations to exempt products containing microbeads that are used for an industrial cleaning method where the use of microbeads cannot be substituted.
*A relevant provider is one of the following:
A person must not dispose, or cause the disposal, of a substance containing microbeads in the following areas:
If in the disposal process the microbeads accidently enter the above areas, evidence must be shown that all reasonable precautions were taken to prevent the accidental release of microbeads. If this can be demonstrated, this can be used as an acceptable defence of the contravention.
Commercial properties
If those who are considered authorised persons* suspect an organisation is manufacturing or placing on the market microbeads, then a range of powers are given in order to ensure organisations are complying with this Act. These powers include:
Dwellings
An inspector cannot enter a dwelling (i.e. a place of residency) unless they have consent from the occupier or a warrant is issued to enter the dwelling.
If there are reasonable grounds for believing that a dwelling is connected with the manufacture, placing on the market, disposal, storage, packaging or labelling of products containing microbeads, or information relating to business activity is kept, then inspectors are able to enter and inspect the dwelling and perform the functions of an authorised person listed above.
* Authorised persons can be any of the following:
Anyone; whether it be the general public, manufacturers, sellers etc., who conducts the following is guilty of an offence:
If any substance or product containing microbeads is found at the inspected premises, the person in charge of that premises is required to provide the name and address of the supplier to the authorised person.
Those found to be guilty of an offence will be liable to receive a maximum fine of EUR3,000,000 and/or a maximum prison sentence of 5 years.
Microbeads (Prohibition) Act 2019 (Commencement) Order 2020 (SI 36/2020)
This Commencement Order brings the Microbeads (Prohibition) Act 2019 into force on the 20th February 2020.
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Jurisdiction: UK
Commencement: 28th February 2020
These Regulations place duties on the Government and Secretary of State. There are no compliance duties for organisations.
The principal reason for these Regulations (the ‘2020 Regulations’) is to ensure the accounting for the European Union Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS) at stationary installations and domestic aviation covers the first year (2018) of the third carbon budget period by:
Provisions for carbon accounting are made to determine the net UK carbon account (the amount of net UK emissions of targeted greenhouse gases for the period, either reduced or increased by the amount of carbon units in accordance with these 2020 Regulations).
The amount of net UK carbon accounting for different periods determines whether the targets relating to emission reductions have been met. These 2020 Regulations are relevant to the third carbon budget covering 2018-2022.
EU ETS (stationary installations)
For the first year of the third budget period, EU Member States did not receive a national cap of emission units due to the EU ETS operating at installation level. Therefore instead of using a fixed cap, a notional cap (known as the annual allocation) is created by adding together the volume of EU allowances to UK operators. The UK notional cap is 152,311,507 carbon units.
Circumstances in which carbon units are to be credited to and debited from the net UK carbon account in 2018 as a result of the operation of the EU ETS in that year are set. If the amount of carbon units surrendered by operators of installations in the UK in 2018 was:
Domestic aviation carbon units
Currently the EU ETS provides a cap for aviation emissions and units to confirm compliance. It does not provide a cap for UK only domestic aviation emissions (flights between UK airports), therefore it is not possible to distinguish between domestic aviation emissions and international aviation emissions.
Carbon units to be credited or debited from the net UK carbon account must take into account domestic aviation emissions during 2018. The domestic aviation cap (DAC), expressed in tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent, must be calculated in order to find out which carbon units are to be credited and debited. The calculation can be found below:
E is the mean of the EEA aviation emissions for the years 2004, 2005, and 2006.
F is the domestic aviation emissions for 2010.
G is the EEA aviation emissions for 2010.
If domestic aviation emissions in 2018 were:
During a period beginning on 1st January 2023 and ending on 14th May 2024, the Secretary of State (SoS) must ensure that each carbon unit credited to the net UK carbon account, in respect of 2018 is cancelled; this is to help meet the third carbon budget.
Credited carbon units will also be cancelled under these 2020 Regulations if an equivalent operation under Regulation (EU) 389/2013 establishing a Union Registry is performed.
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The eye is a delicate and vitally important organ and eye protection is essential in a range of industries. The market is full of all manner of safety eyewear which begs the question; what qualities are most important when it comes to eye PPE?
As the primary purpose of safety eyewear is the protection of the eyes the answer may seem obvious. The most important quality of safety eyewear is how effectively the devices prevent foreign objects from entering the eye, right? Well, not necessarily. There would be little use in issuing fishbowl style astronaut helmets to every employee, even if they fully protect the eyes. Would people actually wear them? Would they impede people in their job? How much would they cost compared to a more standard form of eye protection?
When trying to find out the most important characteristics of safety eyewear who better to turn to than companies who have a long history of supplying them to their employees. Specsavers Corporate Eyecare has conducted research, surveying over 500 UK companies, to find out their key priorities for safety eyewear to gain an insight into what they look for.
Perhaps surprisingly, comfort was most selected as a priority at 57% alongside the ability for employees to try on eyewear prior to purchase to test its comfort and fit at 40%.
The look of the product was also given importance, with 30% highlighting designs for both men and women, 27% concerned with style and 25% interested in branding (although interest in branding could be due to style or brand reputation/quality). 29% of companies prioritised pricing.
The results of this survey demonstrate that the selection of eye protection is more complex than may first appear. Companies appear to prioritise comfort and style in many cases, perhaps because ignoring these factors may result in employees not wearing the necessary eye protection.
A landmark case has taken place to help answer a question that is central to handlers of waste; what actually constitutes waste? A simple question that one could be mistaken for assuming would have an equally simple answer.
Under tax laws it was previously established that something you may consider waste may not be ‘taxable waste’ if you make use of it. The precedent for this was established in the Court of Appeal case of HMRC v Waste Recycling Group Ltd [2008] when it was concluded that material used for daily cover and for roads within a landfill was not a taxable waste as it was being made use of.
In a similar case, Biffa Waste Services Ltd and others v The Commissioners for HM Revenue and Customs [2020], the landfill operators argued that black-bag waste, used to line a landfill cell to provide a buffer between the edges of the cell and the waste in the landfill, could not be classed as waste under tax law. They argued that this was because, much like in the 2008 case, they were making use of the waste’s particular properties. They were successful and won the case, meaning that they and other landfill operators who use such methods are now eligible to claim tax rebates for overpayments of landfill tax.
Does this mean if you find a use for your waste it is no longer legally considered waste?
It is important to remember that the interpretation of what constitutes waste under tax law is wholly separate to what constitutes waste under waste management and environmental law. Under these separate regulations, finding a use for waste material will not automatically exempt that material from being classified as waste. To be certain of what constitutes waste under waste management and environmental regulations it may be necessary to use the Environment Agency’s Definition of Waste service (found here). The costs for using this service are:
It is uncertain if definitional deviation of ‘waste’ in tax law will lead to wider legal changes surrounding waste in environmental and waste management legislation. However, for now at least we have to deal with the separate interpretations of waste found in the different doctrines of law.
The Health and Safety (HSE) has revised its manual handling at work guidance document; INDG143
Most, if not all organisations should be familiar with their duties under the Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992, or the Manual Handling Operations (Northern Ireland) Regulations 1992. If you are unfamiliar with the above Regulations, you may want to re-familiarise yourself or review any actions that you may have.
This updated manual handling guidance now brings the risk assessment process in line with the Appendix contained in L23: Guidance on Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992. This is to help identify low-risk tasks and includes:
Although additional information is included, the section on good handling techniques from the previous revision is removed and placed here via HSE’s website instead. Interestingly, the illustrations used to demonstrate good handling techniques for lifting are no longer included, but the text remains the same.
If you would like to view the images for good handling techniques, this can be found on pages 5-7 of the previous guidance document here.
Please note: The most up-to-date version of the manual handling at work guidance document should be used, this can be found here. Only use the previous version if you require illustrations on how to perform good handling techniques.
Following the publication of the revised guidance, it is important to note that there are no changes to the Regulations or policy.
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