The Environmental Permitting (England and Wales) Regulations 2016

Placement of stones or logs in a main river in England for habitat enhancement

18.—(1) Placement of stones or logs in the channel of a main river in England for habitat enhancement.

(2) For the purposes of this paragraph, the specific conditions are—

(a) any stones placed in the channel are of a type that occur naturally in the main river and do not exceed 400mm in any dimension,

(b) any log placed in the channel is less than 2 metres in length, less than 400mm in diameter and oriented at an angle of within 45° to the flow of water,

(c) any log placed in the channel—

(i) is from a type of tree that occurs naturally in the vicinity of the main river, and

(ii) is securely fixed to the bed or bank of the main river,

(d) the stones or logs are placed in the channel over no more than 20 metres of the length, and 20% of the width, of the main river,

(e) the placement of stones or logs does not occur in, or within 200 metres upstream of, a type of habitat included in a list published by the Secretary of State under section 41 of the Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act 2006 or by Welsh Ministers under section 7 of the Environment (Wales) Act 2016,

(f) the works are not carried out in, or within 100 metres of, a water body in England that is part of a main river classified as of high morphological status by the Agency in accordance with the relevant directions, and

(g) no stones or logs are placed within 100 metres of—

(i) a non-agricultural building in the floodplain,

(ii) a natural channel habitat structure,

(iii) an existing emplacement of stones or logs placed in the main river for habitat enhancement, or

(iv) a man-made structure on or in the main river.