United Kingdom environmental law concerns the protection of the

environment Environment most often refers to: __NOTOC__ * Natural environment, all living and non-living things occurring naturally * Biophysical environment, the physical and biological factors along with their chemical interactions that affect an organism or ...

in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

. Environmental law is increasingly a European and an international issue, due to the cross border issues of air and

water pollution Water pollution (or aquatic pollution) is the contamination of water bodies, usually as a result of human activities, so that it negatively affects its uses. Water bodies include lakes, rivers, oceans, aquifers, reservoirs and groundwater. Water ...

, and

man-made climate change In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to E ...

History

In the

common law In law, common law (also known as judicial precedent, judge-made law, or case law) is the body of law created by judges and similar quasi-judicial tribunals by virtue of being stated in written opinions."The common law is not a brooding omnipresen ...

, the primary protection was found in the

tort A tort is a civil wrong that causes a claimant to suffer loss or harm, resulting in legal liability for the person who commits the tortious act. Tort law can be contrasted with criminal law, which deals with criminal wrongs that are punishable ...

nuisance Nuisance (from archaic ''nocence'', through Fr. ''noisance'', ''nuisance'', from Lat. ''nocere'', "to hurt") is a common law tort. It means that which causes offence, annoyance, trouble or injury. A nuisance can be either public (also "common") ...

, but this only allowed for private actions for damages or injunctions if there was harm to land; thus issues such as smells emanating from pig sties,

strict liability In criminal and civil law, strict liability is a standard of liability under which a person is legally responsible for the consequences flowing from an activity even in the absence of fault or criminal intent on the part of the defendant. ...

against dumping rubbish, or damage from exploding dams are included. Private enforcement, however, was limited and found to be woefully inadequate to deal with major environmental threats, particularly threats to common resources. *1306, Edward I briefly banned coal fires in London. *John Evelyn, ''

Fumifugium ''Fumifugium, or, '' is a pamphlet published in London, 1661 (see 1661 in literature), by John Evelyn. It is one of the earliest known works on air pollution and is still considered a significant contribution to the literature on the subject over t ...

'' (1661) argued for burning fragrant wood instead of mineral coal, which he believed would reduce coughing. *''Ballad of Gresham College'' (1661) describes how the smoke "does our lungs and spirits choke, Our hanging spoil, and rust our iron." *In 1800, one million tons of coal were burned in London, and 15 million across the UK. *Smoke Nuisance Abatement (Metropolis) Act 1853 * John Snow in 1854 discovered that the water pump on Broad Street,

Soho Soho is an area of the City of Westminster, part of the West End of London. Originally a fashionable district for the aristocracy, it has been one of the main entertainment districts in the capital since the 19th century. The area was develop ...

was responsible for 616

cholera Cholera is an infection of the small intestine by some strains of the bacterium ''Vibrio cholerae''. Symptoms may range from none, to mild, to severe. The classic symptom is large amounts of watery diarrhea that lasts a few days. Vomiting and ...

deaths because it was contaminated by an old

cesspit A cesspit (or cesspool or soak pit in some contexts) is a term with various meanings: it is used to describe either an underground holding tank (sealed at the bottom) or a soak pit (not sealed at the bottom). It can be used for the temporary co ...

leaking fecal bacteria.

Germ theory of disease The germ theory of disease is the currently accepted scientific theory for many diseases. It states that microorganisms known as pathogens or "germs" can lead to disease. These small organisms, too small to be seen without magnification, invade h ...

began to replace miasma theory that had lingered since the

Black Death The Black Death (also known as the Pestilence, the Great Mortality or the Plague) was a bubonic plague pandemic occurring in Western Eurasia and North Africa from 1346 to 1353. It is the most fatal pandemic recorded in human history, causi ...

. During the "

Great Stink The Great Stink was an event in Central London during July and August 1858 in which the hot weather exacerbated the smell of untreated human waste and industrial effluent that was present on the banks of the River Thames. The problem had bee ...

" of 1858, the dumping of sewerage into the

River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the The Isis, River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, se ...

began to smell so ghastly in the summer heat that Parliament had to be evacuated. The Metropolitan Commission of Sewers Act 1848 had allowed the Metropolitan Commission for Sewers to close

s around the city in an attempt to "clean up" but this simply led people to pollute the river. In 19 days, Parliament passed a further Act to build the

London sewerage system The London sewer system is part of the water infrastructure serving London, England. The modern system was developed during the late 19th century, and as London has grown the system has been expanded. It is currently owned and operated by Thames ...

. * Alkali Act 1863 and

Alkali Act 1874 The Alkali Act 1863 (26 & 27 Vict c 124) was an Act (document), Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Under the Alkali Act 1863, an alkali inspector and four subinspectors were appointed to curb discharge into the air of hydrogen chlorid ...

, amended 1906 * WS Jevons, '' The Coal Question; An Inquiry Concerning the Progress of the Nation, and the Probable Exhaustion of Our Coal Mines'' (1865) * Ground Game Act 1880,

Night Poaching Act 1828 The Night Poaching Act 1828 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom (citation 9 Geo. IV c. 69) still in effect in the 21st century. It forbids night poaching, especially ''taking or destroying game on lands, etc., by night, or enteri ...

Game Act 1831 The Game Act 1831 (1 & 2 Will 4 c 32) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which was passed to protect game birds by establishing a close season when they could not be legally taken. The Act also established the need for game licenc ...

game preservation Game preservation is maintaining a stock of game to be hunted legally. It includes: *Preventing poaching *Preventing losses due to attack by predators. *Encouraging breeding, and sometimes captive breeding for release. Britain Until hand-held gun ...

James Johnston (socialist politician) James Johnston (1846 – 27 April 1928) was a British co-operative and socialist activist. Born in Jarrow, Johnston left school at the age of eleven to work in the office of Palmers Shipbuilding and Iron Company. He studied at evening school and ...

, president of the Smoke Abatement League, international conference in 1911. London also suffered from terrible air pollution, and this culminated in the "

Great Smog The Great Smog of London, or Great Smog of 1952, was a severe air pollution event that affected London, England, in December 1952. A period of unusually cold weather, combined with an anticyclone and windless conditions, collected airborne poll ...

" of 1952, which in turn triggered a legislative response: the Clean Air Act 1956. The basic regulatory structure was to set limits on emissions for households and business (particularly burning

coal Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen. Coal is formed when dea ...

) while an inspectorate would enforce compliance. It required zones for smokeless fuel to be burned and relocated power stations. *Clean Air Act 1968 required tall chimneys to disperse pollution.

Environmental protection

Environment Act 1995 The Environment Act 1995c 25 passed under the ministerial tutelage of John Gummer, is a United Kingdom Act of Parliament which created a number of new agencies and set new standards for environmental management. See also *English land law *UK en ...

*Environmental Damage Regulations (2015) - implement the EU's Environmental Liability Directive 2004/35/EC, originally introduced in 2009 and revised in 2015.Adeptus
The Environmental Damage Regulations (2015)
published 22 October 2015, accessed 12 May 2021

Pollution

Control of Pollution Act 1974 Control may refer to: Basic meanings Economics and business * Control (management), an element of management * Control, an element of management accounting * Comptroller (or controller), a senior financial officer in an organization * Controlling ...

Environmental Protection Act 1990 The Environmental Protection Act 1990 ( initialism: EPA) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that defines, within England and Wales and Scotland, the fundamental structure and authority for waste management and control of emissions ...

Wildlife

Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 The Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 is an Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom implemented to comply with European Council Directive 79/409/EEC on the conservation of wild birds. In short, the act gives protection to native species (especia ...

* Weeds Act 1959 * Badgers Act 1991 *

Protection of Badgers Act 1992 Protection is any measure taken to guard a thing against damage caused by outside forces. Protection can be provided to physical objects, including organisms, to systems, and to intangible things like civil and political rights. Although th ...

Hunting Act 2004 The Hunting Act 2004 (c 37) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which bans the hunting of most wild mammals (notably foxes, deer, hares and mink) with dogs in England and Wales, subject to some strictly limited exemptions; the ...

Conservation

Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 The Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 is an Act of Parliament of the United Kingdom that altered the laws on granting of planning permission for building works, notably including those of the listed building system in En ...

National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949 The National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which created the National Parks Commission which later became the Countryside Commission and then the Countryside Agency, which became ...

National parks of England and Wales National parks of the United Kingdom ( cy, parciau cenedlaethol; gd, pàircean nàiseanta) are areas of relatively undeveloped and scenic landscape across the country. Despite their name, they are quite different from national parks in many ot ...

and

National parks of Scotland The national parks of Scotland ( gd, Pàirc Nàiseanta) are managed areas of outstanding landscape where some forms of development are restricted to preserve the landscape and natural environment. At present, Scotland has two national parks: Loc ...

* Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979 *

Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 The Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 (c. 37), known informally as the CRoW Act or "Right to Roam" Act is a United Kingdom Act of Parliament affecting England and Wales which came into force on 30 November 2000. Right to roam The Act imp ...

Climate change

Climate Change Act 2008 The Climate Change Act 2008 (c 27) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The Act makes it the duty of the Secretary of State to ensure that the net UK carbon account for all six Kyoto greenhouse gases for the year 2050 is at ...

* Planning and Energy Act 2008 *

Energy Act 2008 The Energy Act 2008c 32 is an Act of Parliament, Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Section 110 - Commencement Orders made under section 110(2)The Energy Act 2008 (Commencement No. 1 and Savings) Order 2009(S.I. 2009/45 (C.4))The Ene ...

Energy Act 2010 The Energy Act 2010 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom pertaining to the regulation of energy usage and markets, with amendments to similar pieces of previous legislation. The Act was granted Royal Assent on 8 April 2010 along with ...

Energy Act 2011 The Energy Act 2011c 16 is a UK Act of Parliament relating to UK enterprise law and energy in the UK. Contents Chapter 1, sections 1 to 41 contain an "Energy Company Obligation", requiring the "big six" energy providers (those with over 250k dom ...

European and international law

European Commissioner for the Environment A commissioner (commonly abbreviated as Comm'r) is, in principle, a member of a commission or an individual who has been given a commission (official charge or authority to do something). In practice, the title of commissioner has evolved to in ...

European Climate Change Programme The European Climate Change Programme (ECCP) was launched in June 2000 by the European Union's European Commission, with the purpose of avoiding dangerous climate change. The goal of the ECCP is to identify, develop and implement all the necessary ...

Water Framework Directive The Water Framework Directive 2000/60/EC is an EU directive which commits European Union member states to achieve good qualitative and quantitative status of all water bodies (including marine waters up to one nautical mile from shore) by 2015. ...

Birds Directive The Birds Directive (formally known as Council Directive 2009/147/EC on the conservation of wild birds) is the oldest piece of EU legislation on the environment and one of its cornerstones which was unanimously adopted in April 1979 as the Dire ...

Habitats Directive The Habitats Directive (more formally known as Council Directive 92/43/EEC on the Conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora) is a directive adopted by the European Community in 1992 as a response to the Berne Convention. The E ...

United Nations Environment Programme The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) is responsible for coordinating responses to environmental issues within the United Nations system. It was established by Maurice Strong, its first director, after the United Nations Conference on th ...

References

{{reflist English land law