The Environmental Permitting (England and Wales) Regulations 2010

Public participation: scope

5.—(1) Paragraph 6 applies to every application for the grant of an environmental permit except an application in relation to—

(a) mobile plant;

(b) a radioactive substances activity described in paragraph 5(5) of Part 2 of Schedule 23;

(c) a standard facility, unless the facility is a Part A installation; or

(d) a mining waste operation not involving a mining waste facility to which Article 7 of the Mining Waste Directive applies.

(2) Paragraph 6 applies to every application for the variation of an environmental permit if—

(a) it would entail a substantial change; or

(b) the regulator determines that the paragraph should apply.

(3) Paragraph 8 applies to every regulator-initiated variation if—

(a) it would entail a substantial change; or

(b) the regulator determines that the paragraph should apply.

(4) But paragraphs 6 and 8 do not apply to the extent that the application or regulator-initiated variation relates to—

(a) the burning of waste oil in an appliance with a rated thermal input of less than 0.4 megawatts;

(b) dry cleaning;

(c) the unloading of petrol into stationary storage tanks at a service station if it is an activity within paragraph (c) of Part B of Section 1.2 of Part 2 of Schedule 1; or

(d) any motor vehicle refuelling activity within paragraph (d) or (e) of Part B of Section 1.2 of Part 2 of Schedule 1.

(5) In this paragraph—

“change in operation” means a change in the nature or functioning, or an extension, of an installation, which may have consequences for the environment;

“co-incineration plant” has the meaning given in Section 5.1 of Part 2 of Schedule 1;

“dry cleaning” has the meaning given in Part B of Section 7 of Part 2 of Schedule 1;

“incineration plant” has the meaning given in Section 5.1 of Part 2 of Schedule 1; and

“substantial change” means a change in operation of an installation which in the regulator’s opinion may have significant negative effects on human beings or the environment and includes—

(a)

in relation to a Part A installation, a change in operation which in itself meets the thresholds, if any, set out in Part 2 of Schedule 1, and

(b)

in relation to an incineration plant or co-incineration plant for non-hazardous waste, a change in operation which would involve the incineration or co-incineration of hazardous waste.

(6) When assessing whether a change in operation of a Part B installation has significant effects on the environment, the regulator must consider only its emissions to air.