The government said that a new “common-sense” approach to environmental regulations will help speed up construction of new housing and key infrastructure by “cutting red tape” and removing early holdups for builders.
Certain activities for early stages of construction projects – such as site investigation works, storage of waste materials, and drainage operations – are required to acquire environmental permits before they can begin, despite often posing only "minimal risk".
By removing this requirement, subject to “appropriate controls”, the government said that builders could be saved up to 16 weeks of waiting by moving forward with projects, including onshore windfarms.
For example, an onshore wind farm that might currently require a permit covering multiple activities, such as preparing platforms for cranes and the installation of temporary floodwater barriers, may no longer need a permit at all if it meets certain conditions.
The announcement delivers on a key recommendation from the Corry review of Defra’s regulatory landscape, and will support the government's target of building 1.5 million new homes.
Environment minister Emma Hardy said: “We are committed to ensuring that environmental regulation works for everyone – protecting our towns and countryside from harm and delivering sustainable development.
“As part of the Plan for Change, a common-sense approach to environmental permitting in England will boost economic growth and unleash an era of building, while also keeping people and the environment safe.”
Certain flood risk activities on farms will also no longer require a permit, which the government said could save £360 based on the average permit cost, and reduce delays.
The announcements form part of a wider drive to boost housebuilding, with the Planning and Infrastructure Bill aiming to remove “unnecessary blockers” to new developments like roads, railway lines, windfarms, and houses.
A consultation on proposals to streamline “complex planning rules” and ease “onerous regulatory burdens” was also opened earlier this year, which could see reduced biodiversity net gain (BNG) requirements for minor developments.
However, the Office for Environmental Protection (OEP) labelled the planning bill a "regression", while ISEP has warned that “undermining environmental standards now means undermining economic resilience in the years to come”.
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Chris Seekings is the Deputy Editor of ISEP’s Transform magazine, which is published biomonthly for ISEP members. Chris’s role involves writing sustainability-related news, features and interviews, as well as helping to plan and manage the magazine’s other day-to-day activities.
