Law
Pollution Control
Pollution control refers to the regulatory and technological measures implemented to minimize or eliminate the release of pollutants into the environment. These measures aim to protect human health and the environment by setting limits on emissions, promoting cleaner production processes, and enforcing penalties for non-compliance. Pollution control laws often encompass air, water, and soil pollution, and may involve monitoring, reporting, and remediation requirements.
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eBook - ePub- Susan Wolf, Neil Stanley(Authors)
- 2013(Publication Date)
- Routledge(Publisher)
In this chapter, we introduce the reader to the legal framework which controls polluting emissions to the three environmental media (air, land and water) in England and Wales. The relevant national law is set in the context of European environmental and international environmental law. We examine the sources of environmental law, the relevant legal and policy principles, and the emergence of alternative methods (to the basic legal framework) to control polluting activities. Throughout this textbook we aim to provide the reader with a practical perspective in regard to how the law in England and Wales controls polluting substances discharged into the environment.1.2 What is environmental law?Before embarking on an explanation of the legal framework which regulates polluting emissions in England and Wales, we suggest that the reader spends a few minutes thinking about his or her answers to the following seven questions which are designed to provide the reader with a ‘mindset’ (orientation) which will help him or her grasp much of what follows:(a) What is ‘pollution’ and what is the ‘environment’?(b) What is environmental law? (What does it comprise?)(c) What is environmental law for? (What are its functions?)(d) What are the main features of environmental law?(e) Who uses environmental law and for what purpose(s)?What are the main driving forces behind the(f) What are the main driving forces behind the changes in and development of environmental law?(g) Is the use of legal devices, such as legislation, the only available means to control pollution?1.3 Environmental law: an overviewIn this introductory chapter, we provide an outline of environmental law as it relates to the regulation of polluting activities in England and Wales.1 At 1.4.1, we consider some preliminary issues, especially the difficulties associated with the concepts of ‘pollution’ and ‘environment’, before moving on to discuss the components or elements of environmental law. At 1.4.2, we refer to the persons who frequently use environmental law and their respective objectives. At 1.4.3, we consider the primary functions of environmental law before referring to the forces which are driving its rapid development. At 1.5, we map out the structure of the public regulation of private polluting activities. By this we mean to refer to the regulation of the polluting activities of private legal persons, such as companies and individuals, by public regulatory bodies (such as the Environment Agency and the local authorities). As much of this textbook concerns an explanation of how the Environment Agency regulates polluting emissions via environmental permitting, we recommend readers to read Chapter 6 prior to referring to Chapters 4 , 5 , 7 , 8 , 9 and 10 . At 1.6, we outline the use of environmental law by private persons to protect private interests, to prosecute and to oversee the fairness and legality of decisions made by public regulators. At 1.7, we summarise the sources of environmental law and at 1.8 the principles which guide its development. Finally, at 1.9, we refer to the emergence of new Pollution Control tools to supplement the basic Command and Control framework.2
eBook - ePubEnvironmental Policy
Implementation and Enforcement
- Neil Hawke(Author)
- 2018(Publication Date)
- Routledge(Publisher)
Chapter EightDeveloping Law and Policy for Pollution ControlThe Dimensions of Law and Policy Development
The intention behind this chapter is to build on the content of previous chapters by focusing specifically on one area of law and policy - air Pollution Control - and considering the developmental variables by reference to experiences in the United Kingdom, the European Community, Canada and the United States. As such, the chapter divides into three sections, dealing with policies, strategies, standards and limits; the use of regulatory and other instruments for the purpose of implementation; and (finally), enforcement.Policies, Strategies, Standards and Limits
The peculiar nature of policies and strategies affecting air Pollution Control is examined here, together with policy integration and the transition that occurs where those policies and strategies are realised as standards and limits. It will be seen that there is an almost inevitable overlap between these three areas. As a critical example, it is often the case that a policy or strategy affecting the environment can be characterised by reference to standards and limits as objectives in the application of environmental controls. Consequently, any suggestion that each area exists in its own right probably fails to take account of the realities.The Nature of Policies and Strategies Covering Air Pollution
Policies and strategies on air pollution emerge from a wide range of sources and in this section of the chapter reference is made to an important example of an international convention on the subject, as well as Community policies and strategies, and also those developed in the United Kingdom, the United States and Canada. The opportunity is also taken to examine the environmental indicators which, increasingly, affect the development of policies and strategies in one specific area concerning the generation of greenhouse gases from agriculture. Interspersed throughout are references to the transition of policies and strategies to standards and limits for regulatory and other, related purposes.
eBook - ePub- Gregor I. McGregor(Author)
- 2021(Publication Date)
- CRC Press(Publisher)
Governmental power to tax and spend is expressed in environmental laws providing financial incentives or disincentives for activities society wishes to encourage or discourage. Grants were given for construction of Pollution Control facilities, such as sewage treatment, and research and development. Low interest loans, interest subsidies, mortgage guarantees, and various tax credits or deductions are typical.Common Law Concepts
Common law legal principles enunciated by the courts, before the rise of regulatory programs, are still very important. The new pollution statutes do not supplant but rather supplement them. They exist independent of agency requirements. They are enforced through lawsuits to regulate unacceptable impacts such as nuisances or to allocate resources such as surface waters and groundwater.Examples include principles of nuisance, negligence, trespass, strict liability for ultrahazardous activities, groundwater rights, surface drainage rights, and riparian rights of owners of property abutting bodies of water. They provide access to court for private citizens, communities, and corporations to seek injunctions against environmental harms or money compensation for damages. Indeed, common law litigation is almost the only access for private parties to seek compensation, since few if any of the agency programs are designed to secure reimbursement for personal injuries or harm to private property.Contract Rights
To all these sources of environmental law we should add the field of contract law, since it allows landowners and others to create restrictions on polluting activities or land use through covenants, equitable servitudes, easements, and other contracts and real estate deeds. In a very real way, the public pollution programs are supplemented by this field of “private environmental law”.International Law
It is worth noting in passing that international contracts, in the forms of treaties and conventions, make up a field of “international environmental law”. The United States has entered into international arrangements on air and water pollution; transportation of oil and gas at sea; using Antarctica; mining ocean minerals; fishing and whaling rights; protecting the ozone layer; migratory birds and their flyways; maintaining biological diversity; and rare and endangered species of plants and animals.
eBook - ePub- Wayne T. Davis, Joshua S. Fu, Thad Godish(Authors)
- 2021(Publication Date)
- CRC Press(Publisher)
The effectiveness of state and local air Pollution Control programs varies from state to state, and from one municipality to another. Among the many factors determining the effectiveness of air Pollution Control efforts are (1) a legal framework for regulation promulgation and enforcement, (2) the availability of economic resources, (3) sufficiently trained manpower, (4) the commitment of Pollution Control officials to enforcement of control requirements, (5) the cooperation of public officials, and (6) public acceptance of needed Pollution Control measures. Although each of these is important, the most vital factor is the acceptance of Pollution Control requirements by private citizens, public officials, and sources. Without this support, air Pollution Control objectives may not be achieved.8.6 Public Policy Issues
Clean air legislation has provided a regulatory framework for controlling ambient air pollution. Within that framework, the U.S. EPA is required by law to implement provisions of the CAA in a manner protective of public health and the environment.Regulatory needs change as new problems are identified, the advancement of science indicates a need for changes in existing standards and requirements, and court decisions mandate new actions or changes in proposed or existing regulatory requirements. Therefore, air pollution regulations, and the policies that they embody, are continuously evolving to reflect current realities. Policy considerations may involve using existing regulatory authority or seeking expanded authority through congressional action. Policy issues may also involve negotiation, ratification, and implementation of international treaties.Environmental policy initiatives, or implementation of new regulatory initiatives, commonly result in a measure of controversy. This is particularly the case when proposed policies and regulations have real or perceived major economic implications for those to be regulated. On the other hand, environmental organizations may not accept that regulatory policies are sufficiently stringent.The nature of air Pollution Control engenders a continual public policy development effort that involves proposal of new regulations, participation of the regulated community and other publics, and regulation promulgation and subsequent implementation. Examples of major contemporary public policy issues include new source review, MATS, climate change, the Kyoto Protocol, CAFE, and GHG emission standards. For the reader, searches of the U.S. EPA website (http://www.epa.gov
eBook - ePub- Barry C. Field(Author)
- 2021(Publication Date)
- Routledge(Publisher)
7 Pollution-control standardsDOI: 10.4324/9781003143635-7Essential summaryThe control of environmental pollution to date has relied most heavily on the promulgation and enforcement of standards. A standard is a specification of behavior, or outcome, issued by public authorities and enforced through legal procedures. A pollution-control standard is one that addresses some aspects of the production and management of environmental pollutants. A limit on the quantity of emissions from a specific source is an example. Standards are often described as “command-and-control” because they rely on public authorities to issue and enforce specific rules and regulations governing the actions of polluters. Standards are attractive because they appear to mandate certain pollution-control activity, and because they conform to the polluter-pays principle, that it is polluters who should bear the cost of controlling environmental externalities. But economists criticize the reliance on standards because they are often not cost-effective. In this chapter, we discuss the economics of pollution-control standards.Types of standards
A standard is a specification of behavior: authorities decide what behaviors will be acceptable, then mandate those behaviors in law, to be enforced by special means or through the normal legal machinery of the states. Informally it is called “command-and-control” because it directly specifies and enforces certain actions to be undertaken by polluters and regulators.Pollution-control standards are popular because they appear to be direct and specific, setting specific limits on some aspect of the pollution-control process. They answer to the desire to bring about definite and timely changes in the behavior of polluters. It takes discretion away from polluters, which for many people was the chief cause of pollution in the first place. Consider again the basic graph, presented in Chapter 3
