European Network of the Heads of Environment Protection Agencies

England and Wales

2011-12-12T15:58:34Z

The Environment Agency (England and Wales)

About us

The Environment Agency works to create better places for people and wildlife. We do this by implementing the policies of UK government departments and the Welsh Assembly Government (WAG).

We were established to bring together responsibilities for protecting and improving the environment and to contribute to sustainable development. We seek to take an integrated approach in which we consider all elements of the environment when we plan and carry out our work. It allows us to identify the best environmental options and solutions, taking into account the different impacts on water, land, air, resources and energy.

We help prevent hundreds of millions of pounds worth of damage from flooding. Our work helps to support a greener economy through protecting and improving the natural environment for beneficial uses, working with businesses to reduce waste and save money, and helping to ensure that the UK economy is ready to cope with climate change. We will facilitate, as appropriate, the development of low carbon sources of energy ensuring people and the environment are properly protected.

The Environment Agency was established on 1 January 1996. Legally our Board constitutes the Environment Agency and is directly responsible to Government Ministers for all aspects of our organization and performance. We have 12,000 employees and an annual budget around £1.1bn a year.

We are a public body - around 70% of our funding comes from government, and most of the rest comes from various charging schemes. We are independent, but we work closely with the government to get the best possible results for the environment.

What we do

We play a central role in protecting and enhancing the environment in England and Wales. We are responsible for the practical implementation and enforcement of many aspects of European Union and domestic environmental legislation. We also have responsibility for protecting communities from the risk of flooding and managing water resources.

Although we work across England and Wales, we have local offices working closely with other local bodies to develop the right solutions for local environments. We also work with local authorities and others to tackle the immediate environmental issues locally.

Our work includes:

Protecting people from flood
Working with industry to protect the environment and human health
Concentrating our effort on higher risk businesses - those that run potentially hazardous operations, or whose performance just isn't coming up to scratch
Helping business use resources more efficiently
Taking action against those who don't take their environmental responsibilities seriously - every year we bring hundreds of offenders to justice, leading to millions of pounds of fines.
Looking after wildlife - we complete around 400 projects every year to improve the places where threatened species live.
Helping people get the most out of their environment, including boaters and anglers. We sell over a million rod licences a year, many to young people coming into the sport for the first time. All the money we raise goes straight back into improving the places people fish.
Working with farmers to build their role as guardians of the environment, tackling pollution we cannot see as well as adding to the beauty of the countryside.
Helping to improve the quality of inner city areas and parks by restoring rivers and lakes.
Working with government, industry and local authorities to make the environment a priority.

Our structure

Split between Bristol and London, our head office is where we provide technical advice and support Government policy making. Our chief executive and directors are based here, and they are responsible for making sure regulation is implemented consistently across the country, taking into account the environmental, social and economic differences in each region.

We have teams based in six regions in England and Wales. They support the area offices and help co-ordinate their activities. The people who work in these offices are responsible for the day-to-day management of the work activities in the area and working with local communities to meet their needs.

Our priorities

Our focus is to look after the environment and make it a better place. Working with business, government and society as a whole, we will make the environment in England and Wales cleaner and healthier.

We will;

Act to reduce climate change and its consequences

We will play a full part in helping to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, help people and wildlife adapt to climate change, and put climate change at the heart of everything we do.

Protect and improve water, land and air

We will maintain and improve water quality, promote more sustainable land management, protect and enhance wildlife, and improve the way we work as a regulator to protect people and benefit the environment while minimising costs to businesses.

Work with people and communities to create better places

We will reduce the risks to people, households and businesses from flooding and help people to improve, protect, value and enjoy their local environment.

Work with businesses and other organisations to use resources wisely

We will further our understanding of the best environmental options for managing waste and promote more efficient and sustainable use of resources.

Be the best we can

We will improve the way we work with customers and partners and involve communities. We will use compelling evidence and knowledge to support decision-making and use the funding available to us to maximise outcomes for people and the environment, while minimising our own environmental impact.

Website: www.environment-agency.gov.uk

Click here to see the location on map

Scotland

2011-12-12T15:58:34Z

Scotland

Abstract

SEPA’s main role is to make sure that the environment and human health are protected, that we use our natural resources and services as sustainably as possible, and to contribute to sustainable economic growth. SEPA implements Scottish, UK and European legislation, issuing licences to industry in order to control pollution and prevent environmental damage. We also publish a wide range of environmental information and advise Scottish Ministers, regulated operators, industry and the public on environmental best practice

Legal text

SEPA was established by the Environment Act 1995 and was initially accountable to the Secretary of State for Scotland. The Scotland Act 1998 created the Scottish Parliament to which environmental matters were devolved. We are now accountable to the Scottish Parliament via Scottish Ministers. SEPA is a non-departmental public body (NDPB). We began work in April 1996, providing Scotland for the first time with a national environment protection service. We brought together functions previously carried out by approximately 64 different public bodies.

Our operational context and priorities are agreed with Scottish Ministers and are set out in a number of documents published and reviewed regularly by the Scottish Government.

Mandate

As Scotland’s environment watchdog, SEPA aims to protect the environment and human health by being an excellent environmental regulator and an effective and influential authority on the environment, limiting climate change and preparing Scotland for a sustainable future.

Our Corporate Plan for 2012-2017 explains our vision and strategic direction over the next five years, based on achieving four outcomes:

Scotland’s environment is protected and improving

Scotland’s environment is understood and SEPA is a respected and influential authority

Scotland is preparing for a sustainable future and is taking steps to tackle climate change

SEPA is a high performance organisation.

Each year we also publish an Annual Operating Plan providing greater detail about the specific activities we will be carrying out and detailed indicators of how well we are performing.

We will review the Corporate Plan every two years to ensure that we are still focusing on where we can most effectively protect and improve Scotland’s environment, and that we are still working in a way which provides the best possible value.

Based on a sound understanding of environmental trends and priorities along with national and international law and obligations, SEPA’s work aligns with the National Performance Framework and Scottish Government’s objective of sustainable economic growth.

Budget and number of staff

SEPA’s total expenditure for the financial year 2012–2013 is forecasted to be £71.8million (c.€90.48million) (and £3.2million (c.€4.03million) capital costs. We receive c.52% directly from the Scottish Government as grant-in-aid. Around 47% of our income comes from charges paid to us by licence holders; we have a statutory duty that requires us to recover our costs in this way, reflecting the government’s commitment to the ‘polluter pays’ principle. The remaining income (£820,000 (c.€1.03million)) comes from, for example, the UK Department of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs for transfrontier shipment of waste work, and other small sources of income. Further information is provided in our Annual Operating Plan.

SEPA employs around 1140 staff (full time equivalents) in a wide range of occupations and specialisms in 25 offices across Scotland.

Areas of responsibility

Under various regulations we issue licences and consents to control pollution from, for example, sewage works, waste management facilities, farms, major industrial sites and nuclear facilities. Briefly, SEPA regulates/inspects:

activities that may pollute water (groundwater, freshwaters, estuarine and marine waters)

activities that may pollute air

storage, transport and disposal of waste

contaminated land sites.

We also implement regulations covering the keeping, use, accumulation and disposal of radioactive substances to ensure that public exposures to ionising radiation do not exceed the 1 millisievert per year dose limit set by international organisations.

SEPA's other responsibilities include:

sampling and monitoring, and reporting on Scotland’s air, land and water environments

measuring water quantity and flow

data interpretation and analysis (we report on the state of Scotland’s environment in publications, on our website and on the Scotland’s Environment website)

flood risk management, maintaining a flood warning system and providing flood risk maps

Preparing for regulation of reservoir safety

helping Scotland move towards a zero waste society (SEPA works in partnership with Zero Waste Scotland to deliver the Scottish Government’s Zero Waste Plan, which sets the path towards recycling 70% of all waste in Scotland by 2025)

investigating environmental crimes and preparing cases for prosecution

responding to pollution incidents and major emergencies/incident response, including delivering an airborne hazards incident response system for Scotland providing capability for SEPA, Health Protection Scotland and other agencies to carry out high quality public health risk assessments based on monitoring and modelling at the time of an incident

Civil Contingencies Act

controlling, with the Health and Safety Executive, the risk of major accidents at industrial sites

operating the Scottish Radioactive Incident Monitoring Network

administration of the Emissions Trading Scheme in Scotland

‘horizon-scanning’, looking ahead to anticipate impact of new challenges, legislation and issues on the organisation; we have expertise on global issues such as sustainable development and climate change research.

From 2015 SEPA is also to undertake the role of collecting the replacement for Landfill Tax in Scotland (a Scottish tax to be set by the Scottish Parliament to take the place of the UK Landfill Tax).

SEPA also works with many other organisations to help protect and improve the environment. We enable business and industry to:

understand their environmental responsibilities

benefit from good practice

comply with environmental legislation

realise the many economic benefits of good environmental practice.

We work in partnership with:

other public bodies in Scotland to deliver joined-up public services and to contribute to economic success through sustainable economic growth:

Environmental & clean technologies

Encourage/support innovation

Facilitate development

Efficient processes

the Police, Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service and the UK Borders Agency, to address the problem of environmental crime. We are increasingly taking a ‘problem-solving’ approach, analysing data from within SEPA and partner organisations to identify the causes of environmental harms, and then focusing our resources on tackling the most significant problems

the public, private and voluntary sectors to deliver environmental improvements and meet carbon targets

our sister environment agencies in the UK, Ireland and across Europe to share knowledge and expertise

EU institutions to understand and influence EU policies and legislation via Networks such as Scotland Europa, European Network of Heads of Environment Protection Agencies; and IMPEL (EU Network for Implementation and Enforcement of Environmental Law).

Other functions provide support in communications, education and awareness raising, facilitating public participation, human resources, finance and corporate services.

Organisational structure and governance

SEPA is governed by the Agency Board. The Board is appointed by Scottish Ministers and comprises a chairman and ten members, including the Chief Executive. The Board is responsible for establishing SEPA’s overall strategic direction within the policy and resources framework agreed with Scottish Ministers. It monitors the organisation’s performance, and ensures that SEPA has sound environmental policies and observes high standards of corporate governance.

The Chief Executive reports to the Board and is the Accountable Officer for SEPA. The Agency Management Team is collectively responsible for the operation of the organisation. To see SEPA’s structure as at August 2012 please click on the Top Level Organogram on the Agency Management Team website.

Additional information

Useful resources that are available on the SEPA website (www.sepa.org.uk) include:

Our Corporate Plan for 2012-17

Our Annual Operating Plan which summarises the year ahead and what we want to achieve

Our 10 year perspective document – summarising our achievements over the last 10 years

Our Annual reports and SEPA’s performance website – SEPA Performs – which not only gives details of SEPA’s structure and reports but also gives a quarterly update of how we are performing against our key performance targets

Floodline – Flood Warning System.

See: Scottish Environment Protection Agency: Publications

Northern Ireland

2012-02-09T00:00:00Z

About Us

The Northern Ireland Environment Agency (NIEA) is an Executive Agency within the Department of Environment (Northern Ireland), operating within the context of the Department’s overall vision and strategic objectives.

We are headed by a Chief Executive who is also the Agency Accounting Officer, designated by and accountable to the Principal Accounting Officer of the Department of the Environment (Northern Ireland), and Parliament, for the effective financial management of the Agency.

Our key performance targets are agreed with the Minister responsible for the Department of the Environment. At the end of the financial year, we report our performance against these targets in our Annual Report and Accounts which is laid before the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Our Structure

We have a remit that covers a very wide range of environmental issues. The NIEA Board spans three Directorates - Natural Heritage, Built Heritage and Environmental Protection.

NIEA is the only agency in the UK which covers all three areas of Environmental Protection, Natural Heritage and Built Heritage.

A copy of our structure is attached.

Our Mission, Vision and Aims

Our mission is to lead the way in protecting the environment and built heritage, supporting well-being and the economy.

Our aim is to protect, conserve and promote the natural environment and built heritage for the benefit of present and future generations.

Our vision is that we will have a healthy and well protected environment and heritage in Northern Ireland which contributes to the social and economic well-being of the whole community.

To achieve our aim and vision, we are working towards four long term environmental outcomes:

Sustainable use and protection of our natural resources;
Improved conservation and management of our natural heritage;
Improved conservation and protection of our built heritage; and
Better public awareness and understanding of the environment.

We take the lead in advising on, and in implementing, the Government's environmental policy and strategy in Northern Ireland. We carry out a range of activities, which promote the Government's key themes of sustainable development, biodiversity and climate change.

In delivering our four long term outcomes the role of NIEA is to:

Promote both public awareness of environmental issues and action to deal with them;
Regulate adverse human impacts upon the environment;
Work in partnership with others to protect the environment;
Provide financial support to others to encourage action to protect the environment;
Manage our properties (historic monuments, country parks and national nature reserves) to promote public access to, and understanding of the environment; and
Advise Government and other key sectors on environmental issues.

In 2008 we published Northern Ireland’s first report on the State of the Environment which provided new understanding of the overall pressures facing us. The report identified climate change, social and economic growthand rural land use as significant issues for our future. www.doeni.gov.uk/niea/stateoftheenvironmentreportfornorthernirelandsummarydocument.pdf

Our Work

We work closely with other government departments and authorities to share expert knowledge in an encompassing range of environmental matters. We help define strategies and policies on the most effective ways to limit the adverse environmental effects of modern society. From air quality to urban development, we play a key role in advising government on how these can impact on natural resources, wildlife and architecture.

Our main operational responsibilities are:

· Control of pollution through prevention, response, licensing and enforcement;
· Conservation of biodiversity;
· Improvement of water quality;
· Regulation of activities with the potential to have an environmental impact;
· Conservation and promotion of historic buildings and monuments;
· Designation of important natural and historic features, landscapes and habitats;
· Research and monitoring to provide sound evidence for environmental action; and
· Management and promotion of nature reserves, country parks and cultural heritage.

Our work reflects a diverse and integrated network that draws on many different scientific and professional skills and expertise. This variety of skills and experience allows us to manage and protect our landscapes and their wildlife, to maintain a cleaner, greener environment and to record and conserve historic monuments and buildings.

Our work includes:

Regulating over 400 different emissions through the application of Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control;
Playing a vital part in the Northern Ireland Land Use Planning system by providing advice and comment on 8,000 consultations every year;
Caring for 191 historic monuments and maintaining the list of 8,500 buildings of special architectural or historic importance;
Managing 7 country parks, 60 nature reserves and 15 visitor centres.

Each year we:

Respond to 2,000 reports of water pollution;
Carry out 13,000 inspection, investigation or compliance monitoring visits;
Welcome 2 million visitors to our historic monuments, country parks and nature reserves.

In 2010/11, NIEA:

Handled 6,000 applications for licences, approvals, consents or permits;
Undertook 2,000 enforcement actions, and seized £190,000 of property from criminals who had caused environmental damage;
Processed 28,500 consignment notes to allow the safe movement of hazardous waste;
Attracted a record number of 57,000 visitors during European Heritage Open Days;
Promoted and delivered 15 major ‘flagship’ family events and around 250 small scale seasonal events;
Provided £2.7 million in grant aid via the Natural Heritage Grant Programme to support a total of 68 projects delivered by 38 organisations;
Designated a further 25 Areas of Special Scientific Interest, meeting the target of 75 new declarations over the lifetime of the Programme for Government.

Our Resources

NIEA employs over 700 staff at its headquarters buildings in Belfast and Lisburn and a number of regional parks and office locations across Northern Ireland. Our primary source of income in terms of Departmental Resource and Capital Expenditure continues to come from Central Government and our total resource costs currently stand around £42m. We also receive around £7m of fees income, primarily from our regulatory regimes.

Organogram

Contact Details

Chief Executive – John McMillen

Director of Environmental Protection – Dave Foster

Address: Klondyke Building, Cromac Avenue, Gasworks Business Park, Belfast, BT7 2JA, Northern Ireland

Tel:+44 (0)28 9056 9210

More information about NIEA is available at www.doeni.gov.uk/niea. and is also contained in these factsheets