Drainage (Environmental Impact Assessment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2006

PART I INTRODUCTORY AND APPLICATION

Citation and commencement

1.  These Regulations may be cited as the Drainage (Environmental Impact Assessment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2006 and shall come into operation on 20th March 2006.

Interpretation

2.—(1) In these Regulations—

• “additional information” in any case where an environmental statement has been prepared in respect of proposed works means any information relating to the statement which is not contained in it;

• “another EEA State” means an EEA State other than the United Kingdom;

• “canal scheme” has the same meaning as in Article 42 of the Water Order(1);

• “the Commission” means the Water Appeals Commission established under Article 7 of the Water and Sewerage Services (Northern Ireland) Order 1973(2);

• “the consultation bodies” shall be construed in accordance with regulation 6(2);

• “the Department” means—

  (a)

  in relation to any canal schemes or marina works the Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure; and

  (b)

  for all other purposes the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development;

• “the Directive” means Council Directive 85/337/EEC(3) on the assessment of the effects of certain public and private projects on the environment as amended by Council Directive 97/11/EC(4) and Council Directive 2003/35/EC(5);

• “drainage” includes defences against water including seawater;

• “drainage works” means—

  (a)

  any works carried out under the Drainage Order for the purpose of draining land or for preventing or mitigating flooding or erosion to which land is subject and includes the construction, cleansing, scouring, deepening, widening, straightening or diverting of any watercourse or outfall for water, canalisation, the construction, installation or alteration of any pump, pump machinery or pump-house, the removal of any obstruction, natural or artificial, in any watercourse and the construction, repair, raising, lowering, widening, straightening, altering or removal of any embankment, dam, barrier, sluice, weir, wall, culvert or groyne or of any structure or erection for the purpose of defence against, or relief from, water; or

  (b)

  any changes made to or extension of such works;

• “the Drainage Order” means the Drainage (Northern Ireland) Order 1973(6);

• “EEA State” means a State which is a Contracting Party to the Agreement on the European Economic Area signed at Oporto on 2nd May 1992 as adjusted by the Protocol signed in Brussels on 17th March 1993;

• “environmental statement” means a statement that includes—

  (a)

  such of the information referred to in Part I of Schedule 2A to the Drainage Order as is reasonably required to assess the environmental effects of any proposed works and which the Department can, having regard in particular to current knowledge and methods of assessment, reasonably be required to compile; and

  (b)

  at least the information referred to in Part II of Schedule 2A to the Drainage Order;

• “general advertisement” means publication of a notice—

  (a)

  in the Belfast Gazette; and

  (b)

  on the website maintained by the Department;

• “local advertisement” means a notice in one or more newspapers circulating in the immediate locality of any proposed works;

• “marina works” means—

  (a)

  works carried out in relation to a marina under Part III of the Water Order; and

  (b)

  any changes made to or extension of such works;

• “proposed works” shall be construed in accordance with regulation 5; and

• “the Water Order” means the Water (Northern Ireland) Order 1999(7).

(2) In these Regulations, “the Drainage Council”, “drainage scheme” and “watercourse” have the meanings respectively assigned to them by Article 2(2) of the Drainage Order.

(3) In these Regulations, any reference to significant effects on the environment includes a reference to such effects on the environment in another EEA State.

(4) Expressions used in these Regulations and in the Directive have the same meaning for the purposes of these Regulations as they have for the purposes of the Directive.

(5) The Interpretation Act (Northern Ireland) 1954(8) shall apply to these Regulations as it applies to an Act of the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Application

3.—(1) Subject to the following provisions and regulation 23, Part II shall apply in relation to any drainage works other than works—

(a) commenced before the coming into operation of these Regulations;

(b) carried out under a drainage scheme which was confirmed under Article 13 of the Drainage Order or treated by virtue of Article 8(1) or 9(1) of that Order as if it had been confirmed under Article 13 of that Order.

(2) Part II shall apply in relation to any marina works which were commenced after the coming into operation of these Regulations other than works carried out under a canal scheme.

(3) The amendments made to the Water Order by regulation 22 shall not have effect in relation to any canal scheme prepared before the coming into operation of these Regulations.

(4) The amendments made to the Drainage Order by regulations 16 to 21 shall not have effect in relation to any drainage scheme prepared before the coming into operation of these Regulations.

(5) Part II shall not apply in relation to any proposed drainage works or marina works which the Department directs are to be exempted from the said Part II.

(6) Part III shall not apply in relation to any proposed drainage scheme or canal scheme which the Department directs is to be exempted from the said Part III.

(7) The Department shall only make a direction under paragraph (5) or (6) in an exceptional case and where it does so, it shall—

(a) consider whether in that case another form of assessment of the environmental effects of the proposed works or scheme in question would be appropriate;

(b) make available to the public the information obtained under that other form of assessment, information relating to the making of the direction and the reasons for making it.

(8) No direction shall be made under paragraph (5) or (6) where the Department or any other Northern Ireland department is aware that the proposed works or scheme in question would be likely to have significant effects on the environment of another EEA State.

(9) Where the Department makes a direction under paragraph (5) or (6) it shall by general and local advertisement briefly describe the proposed works, explain the effects of the direction and give the reasons for making it.

(1)

S.I. 1999/662 (N.I. 6)

(2)

S.I. 1973/70 (N.I. 2)

(3)

O.J. No. L175, 5.7.85, p. 40

(4)

O.J. No. L73, 14.3.97, p. 5

(5)

O.J. No. L156, 25.6.2003, p. 17

(6)

S.I. 1973/69 (N.I. 1) as amended by S.R. No. 394

(7)

S.I. 1999/662 (N.I. 6)

(8)

1954 c. 33 (N.I.)