For protection of the Environment Agency
14.—(1) For the protection of the Environment Agency (in this article referred to as “the Agency”) the following provisions shall, unless otherwise agreed in writing between the Commissioners and the Agency, have effect.
(2) Nothing in this Order or in any enactment incorporated with or applied by this Order shall prejudice or affect the operation of section 109 of the Water Resources Act 1991(1) or any byelaws made under that Act or the Land Drainage Act 1991(2) in relation to anything done under or in pursuance of this Order.
(3) (a) Before carrying out any works which involve the erection or raising of any obstruction to the flow of any watercourse which is not part of a main river within the meaning of section 113 of the Water Resources Act 1991 or the construction, alteration or replacement of any culvert or any structure designed to contain or divert the flow of any such watercourse in, under or through any land held for the purpose of or in connection with the works, the Commissioners shall submit to the Agency proper and sufficient plans thereof for its approval.
(b)Any works in respect of which plans are required to be submitted to the Agency for its approval under this paragraph shall not be carried out except in accordance with such plans as may be approved in writing by the Agency or as are settled in accordance with paragraph (6) below.
(c)The approval of plans submitted under this paragraph shall not be unreasonably withheld and, if within two months after such plans have been supplied to the Agency, the Agency has neither given nor refused in writing its approval, together in the case of a refusal with a statement of the grounds for refusal, it shall be deemed to have approved the plans as submitted.
(d)For the purposes of this article, “plans” includes sections, drawings, specifications, calculations and descriptions.
(4) Any culvert or any structure designed to contain or divert the flow of any watercourse situated within any land held for the purpose of or in connection with the works, whether constructed under the powers conferred by this Order or in existence prior to the making hereof, shall be maintained by the Commissioners in good repair and condition and free from obstruction.
(5) If any obstruction is erected or raised or any culvert is constructed, altered or replaced in contravention of this article, the Commissioners shall, upon receiving notice from the Agency, take such action as may be necessary to remedy the effect of the contravention to the Agency’s satisfaction and, in default, the Agency may itself take such action as may be necessary and recover the expenses reasonably incurred by it in so doing from the Commissioners as a debt due from them to the Agency.
(6) Any dispute or difference which may arise between the Agency and the Commissioners under this article shall be referred to a single arbitrator to be agreed upon between the parties or, failing such agreement, to be appointed by the President for the time being of the Institution of Civil Engineers on the application of either party (after giving notice in writing to the other of them).