The use of legislation in environmental control
Introduction
Legislation is an important instrument in the control of environmental hazards to health, and has been used from the earliest days of public health, for example in the control of water quality and sanitation in the 19th century, and in
various forms of air quality legislation in the 20th century. Legislation may take many forms, including regulation of emissions that may cause environmental pollution, taxation of environment- and health-damaging activities, and
establishing the legal framework for trading schemes (e.g. for carbon emissions). Other Actions may rely on voluntary agreements. Among major current legislative frameworks are those relating to environmental permitting, and those
mandating environment and health impact assessments.
Key definitions and terms
| Directive (of the European Union) | A type of legislation promulgated by the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union that binds member countries to achieve stated objectives within a certain time limit, but allows the national authorities in each country to choose the choice of form and means to be used to meet those objectives. |
| Regulation | A rule or order issued by a government department or administrative agency, usually under authority of statute, that enforces or amplifies enacted laws. |
| White paper | A detailed outline of a policy, which gives Parliament and outside organisations the opportunity to comment on future legislation. White papers often become the basis for a bill. |
Historical perspective
| Environmental legislation | Some of the greatest benefits to public health have been achieved as a result of environmental interventions. Legislation has responded to the major environmental and public health concerns of the time and in notable cases has had a crucial influence in improving health. |
| Public Health Act (1848) | Local Boards of Health in England and Wales were created under The Public Health Act of 1848 in response to cholera epidemics. Their responsibility was to improve the sanitary conditions of urban areas including through control of sewers, street cleaning, the provision of public lavatories, the supply of water and other measures. |
| Clean Air Act (1956) | The Clean Air Act of 1956 was enacted following long debate about the adverse effects of air pollution, which came to the fore with the London smog of December 1952 and the evidence of its adverse effect on health. The Act aimed to control urban pollution by introducing smokeless zones. Power stations were also relocated away from urban areas. These measures helped to reduce air pollution levels in cities. |
| Climate Change legislation | Among today's dominant environmental concerns is climate change, and important legislation has included:
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Regulation
| Forms of environmental regulation | Regulation has a key role in controlling environmental pollution and the associated risks to human health. Among its different forms are:
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| Trading schemes |
Regulation, or threat of regulation, is a key element of environmental public health policy, which needs to be backed up by compliance-monitoring and enforcement mechanisms. Much UK environmental legislation now arises from European Directives which require member states to achieve specific environmental objectives. |
Specific frameworks
| Environmental permitting | Within Europe, pollution is controlled under EC directive, Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control (IPPC). In England and Wales, this has been implemented through Pollution Prevention and Control (PPC) regulations which, from 6 April 2008, have been incorporated into the framework of the Environmental Permitting Regulations (EPR). The latter entails a risk-based approach to pollution control. |
| Environmental and health impact assessments | In the UK, environmental impacts are taken into account in the planning process in fulfilment of obligations under the 1988 European Directive on Environmental Impact Assessment. This Directive was designed to ensure that environmental issues are addressed in policies and planning in a rigorous, scientific and transparent manner. Such assessment is a requirement for certain types of developments. The requirements of the Directive were transposed into domestic legislation by the Town and Country Planning (Environmental Impact Assessment) (England and Wales) Regulations. Health Impact Assessment (HIA - see also section 10) refers to the parallel methods used to assess the effect of a policy, programme or project on the health of a population. It is intended to help decisions by predicting the |
Useful websites
- European Commission environment website
http://ec.europa.eu/environment/index_en.htm - Governemnt website aimed at explaining environmental legislation to the business community
http://www.envirowise.gov.uk/home
© Dr Paul Wilkinson 2009
