NCJ Number
130121
Journal
Journal of Law and Society Volume: 18 Issue: 1 Dated: special issue (Spring 1991) Pages: 18-31
Date Published
1991
Length
14 pages
Annotation
The White Paper on the Environment, published in September 1990, describes integrated pollution control as the most important feature of the United Kingdom's Environmental Protection Act.
Abstract
The White Paper maintains that the government currently takes a precautionary approach to pollution control that relates the scale of effort to the degree of risk. The scope and effectiveness of integrated pollution control depend on the particular pollution control process involved and the substances to which it will be applied. The Environmental Protection Act empowers the government to set statutory emission limits, restrict the concentration of any substance that may be released by a prescribed process, and establish quality objectives and standards for any environmental medium. It is envisioned that the introduction of integrated pollution control will be phased. An integrated approach, however, should not be regarded as the last word on environmental protection. Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Pollution needs adequate resources and political will to assure that integrated pollution control will justify at least some of its optimistic expectations. Cost recovery and public information provisions of the Environmental Protection Act are examined. 67 notes and references