Appeals against screening and consent decisions
31.—(1) The person specified in paragraph (2) may appeal under this regulation.
(2) The persons referred to in paragraph (1) are—
(a)a person who has applied for a screening decision in respect of a project which the Department has decided is a significant project, or is deemed to have so decided, under regulation 8;
(b)a person who has applied for consent for a significant project in respect of which consent has been refused or has been granted subject to conditions, other than those specified in regulation 18(2); and
(c)a person who has been notified of a further decision under paragraph 3 of Schedule 4.
(3) An appeal against a relevant decision must be brought within 90 days of the date the person concerned was notified of the relevant decision.
(4) A notice of appeal must—
(a)describe the relevant decision;
(b)state the grounds of appeal; and
(c)state whether the appellant would like the appeal to be in the form of a hearing or local inquiry or to be disposed of on the basis of written representations; and
(d)be served on the Department.
(5) As soon as is reasonably practicable after receiving a notice of appeal against a relevant decision, the Department must appoint such person as it thinks appropriate (“the appointed person”) to exercise, with or without payment, the functions set out in these regulations in relation to an appeal.
(6) The Department must, within 14 days of the date it receives the copy of the notice of appeal, provide the appointed person with sufficient information to identify the interested parties.
(7) The appointed person must serve copies of the notice on the interested parties as soon as is reasonably practicable after receiving that information.
(8) A person who is served with a copy of the notice under paragraph (7) may only make representations in respect of the appeal if he notifies the appointed person of his wish to do so within 21 days of the date he receives the copy of the notice.
(9) The appointed person must decide whether the appeal should be—
(a)by hearing or local inquiry; or
(b)conducted by written representations,
and the appointed person must also notify his decision to the participants in the appeal.
(10) On determining the appeal, the appointed person may allow or dismiss the appeal, or reverse any part of the relevant decision, and may consider the appeal as if he were making a decision on the matter in question for the first time.
(11) Except as otherwise provided by this regulation or regulations 32 or 33, the appointed person must determine the procedure for deciding the appeal, and that procedure may include provision for site visits.
(12) Any representations, statement or other documents to be submitted to the appointed person under regulation 32 or 33 must be accompanied by as many copies as the appointed person shall specify.
(13) In this regulation, “relevant decision” means—
(a)a decision referred to in paragraph (2)(a);
(b)a refusal of consent or a grant of consent subject to conditions referred to in paragraph (2)(b); or
(c)a notification referred to in paragraph (2)(c).