Environment watchdog agrees first enforcement undertaking over odours – Local Government Lawyer

‘The Environment Agency has for the first time accepted an enforcement undertaking (EU) for alleged permit breaches relating to odour at an installation.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 26th June 2018

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

UK inquiry opened into carbon capture, usage and storage – OUT-LAW.com

‘A UK parliamentary committee is to scrutinise how the government plans to reduce emissions and meet its climate change targets should the cost of using carbon capture, usage and storage (CCUS) solutions not fall.’

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OUT-LAW.com, 31st May 2018

Source: www.out-law.com

Businessman illegally raised value of home by chopping down protected trees – Daily Telegraph

‘A wealthy businessman illegally cut down 11 protected trees on his land to give himself a bigger back garden, a court has heard.’

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Daily Telegraph, 2nd May 2018

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Throttling Environmental Information – Panopticon

Posted April 27th, 2018 in environmental protection, freedom of information, news by sally

‘As is so often the way in information rights, the Upper Tribunal reaches a perfectly sensible decision and gives practical guidance which others can actually apply, only for the Court of Appeal to insist on saying mostly the same thing but less clearly and less helpfully. As a result, the Upper Tribunal then has to reconsider the area and steer the law back to a productive course. So it was in Department for Transport & Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency & Porsche Cars GB Ltd v Information Commissioner & Cieslik [2018] UKUT 127 (AAC) (Cieslik), on the – to put it politely – potential interpretative difficulties on the issue of the meaning of “environmental information” under the EIR following the ‘guidance’ of the Court of Appeal in Department for Business, Enterprise and Industrial Strategy v Information Commissioner & Henney [2017] EWCA Civ 844 (see here). And the judgment of Judge Markus QC in Cieslik is a genuinely important and valuable exercise in course correction.’

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Panopticon, 27th April 2018

Source: panopticonblog.com

Badger cull fueling illegal wildlife crimes, charities claim – Daily Telegraph

Posted April 17th, 2018 in animals, crime, environmental protection, news, reports by sally

‘The badger cull is fuelling hundreds of illegal wildlife crimes every year, charities have warned as they claimed the authorised slaughter is responsible for the trend. Nearly 1,300 incidents involving wildlife were recorded in 2016 alone, a report has found. The actual number of incidents is also likely to be “far greater” as the Home Office currently categorises many of the crimes as miscellaneous.’

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Daily Telegraph, 16th April 2018

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Dog walker and council both claim success in High Court ruling on PSPO – Local Government Lawyer

‘A resident and dog walker has partially won a High Court challenge to a Public Spaces Protection Order (PSPO) brought in by the London Borough of Richmond. However, the council said the two provisions that were quashed by the judge were only “minor prohibitions” and the bulk of the order remained intact.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 16th April 2018

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Solar power settlement is “largest ever” Human Rights Act payment – Litigation Futures

Posted April 5th, 2018 in compensation, energy, environmental protection, human rights, news by sally

‘A law firm has said it has helped obtain the “largest ever sum” recovered by a Human Rights Act claim, after the government settled longstanding litigation by solar energy companies at just under £60m.’

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Litigation Futures, 5th April 2018

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Air pollution: UK government’s failed legal battles cost taxpayers £500,000 – The Guardian

Posted April 5th, 2018 in costs, environmental protection, news, pollution by sally

‘The UK government has spent more than half a million pounds on failed legal battles against clean air campaigners, according to newly released documents that underline the cost of weak action on pollution.’

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The Guardian, 5th April 2018

Source: www.theguardian.com

Can climate litigation save the world? – The Guardian

‘Courts are a new front line of climate action with cases against governments and oil firms spiralling, and while victories have so far been rare the pressure for change is growing’

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The Guardian, 20th March 2018

Source: www.theguardian.com

Climate Justice and the Global Pact – speech by Lord Carnwath – Supreme Court

Posted March 8th, 2018 in climate change, environmental protection, judges, speeches by sally

‘Climate Justice and the Global Pact, Judicial Colloquium on Climate Change and the Law in Lahore, Pakistan.’

Full speech

Supreme Court, 26th February 2018

Source: www.supremecourt.uk

140-year-old law preventing river fishing during spring likely to be scrapped following Government review – Daily Telegraph

‘140-year-old law that prevents river fishing for three months a year could be scrapped following a Government review.’

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Daily Telegraph, 6th March 2018

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Groundhog Day for air pollution breaches: Government loses again – UK Human Rights Blog

Posted February 23rd, 2018 in environmental protection, government departments, news, pollution by sally

‘R (ClientEarth No.3) v Secretary of State for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs, Garnham J, 21 February 2018. DEFRA has been found wanting again, in its latest attempt to address nitrogen dioxide in air. This is the third time. Yet DEFRA’s own analysis suggests that some 23,500 people die every year because of this pollutant.’

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UK Human Rights Blog, 23rd February 2017

Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com

Court dismisses Nigerian claim against UK parent company – OUT-LAW.com

Posted February 21st, 2018 in environmental protection, negligence, news, subsidiary companies by sally

‘The Court of Appeal has dismissed a claim brought by two Nigerian community groups against Royal Dutch Shell (RDS) for environmental damage caused by one of its subsidiaries.’

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OUT-LAW.com, 21st February 2018

Source: www.out-law.com

Judge quashes grant of permission for holiday park over failure to give reasons – Local Government Lawyer

‘A Planning Court judge has quashed Shepway District Council’s grant of planning permission for a holiday park in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 19th February 2018

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Supreme Court: Environment Agency must compensate fisherman for ‘disproportionate’ fishing restrictions – OUT-LAW.com

‘The Environment Agency (EA) must compensate a fisherman for the “severe and disproportionate” effect of conditions imposed on his fishing license limiting the number of fish he can catch in one year, the UK Supreme Court has ruled.’

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OUT-LAW.com, 16th February 2018

Source: www.out-law.com

CIGI: Brexit, Brexatom, the Environment and Future International Relations (Stephen Tromans QC) – 39 Essex Chambers

Posted February 2nd, 2018 in brexit, EC law, environmental protection, news by sally

‘The terms of the United Kingdom’s exit from the European Union remain vague and fluid at the time of writing. However, it is clear that the prospect has given rise to concern as to the future shape and effectiveness of environmental law following Brexit. EU environmental law, as it has evolved and expanded since the early 1970s, has exerted a profound influence over the law of the United Kingdom, and has in many areas resulted in entrenched environmental problems being tackled and environmental standards being improved.’

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39 Essex Chambers, January 2018

Source: www.39essex.com

Air pollution will damage UK health for ‘many years’, court told – The Guardian

‘Air pollution will continue to take a heavy toll on people’s health for many years to come unless the UK government is forced once again to improve its action plan, the high court has been told.’

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The Guardian, 25th January 2018

Source: www.theguardian.com

Renewed calls for UK to tackle toxic air ahead of high court hearing – The Guardian

Posted January 23rd, 2018 in environmental protection, legislation, news, pollution by sally

‘The government is coming under renewed pressure to introduce a new Clean Air Act to tackle the UK’s toxic levels of air pollution.’

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The Guardian, 23rd January 2018

Source: www.theguardian.com

DEFRA consults on allowing councils to fine people over fly-tipping – Local Government Lawyer

‘Local authorities could have the option of fining those whose waste ends up fly-tipped or illegally dumped rather than having to pursue them through the courts, under proposals put out for consultation by the Government today.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 15th January 2018

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Judges reject fracking appeals but campaigner vows to go to Supreme Court – Local Government Lawyer

Posted January 15th, 2018 in appeals, energy, environmental protection, fracking, local government, news, planning by sally

‘The Court of Appeal has rejected a legal challenge to the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government’s decision to grant planning permission for exploration works to test the feasibility of “fracking” at two sites in Lancashire.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 15th January 2018

Source: localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk