Process industry regulation
SEPA’s role is to reduce emissions of
pollutants and to prevent and minimise harm to the environment and
human health. We protect communities by regulating activities
that can cause harmful pollution. Through regulation SEPA aims
to help business and industry to understand their environmental
responsibilities, enable our customers to comply with legislation
and good practice and to realise the many economic benefits of good
environmental practice.
SEPA currently regulates over 500 major
industrial sites that have the potential to cause air
pollution. Process industry regulation in Scotland is enacted
through the Pollution Prevention and Control (Scotland) Regulations
2000 (as amended). These regulations implement the
requirements of the Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control
(IPPC) Directive which aims to provide an integrated approach to
pollution control preventing emissions into air, water or soil
wherever this is practicable, taking into account waste management.
Where prevention is not possible, the aim is to minimise emissions
in order to achieve a high level of protection for the environment
as a whole.
During the period 2005–2007 the European
Commission (EC) sought to review the implementation of the IPPC
Directive. On 21 December 2007 the EC adopted a Proposal
for a Directive on Industrial Emissions (IE (IPPC) Directive).
The Proposal recasts seven existing Directives related to
industrial emissions into a single clear and coherent legislative
instrument.
The Scottish Pollutant Release Inventory (SPRI) is a publicly
accessible electronic database of releases of certain pollutants to
all environmental media which supports the prevention and reduction
of pollution and allows comparison of releases across industries in
Scotland, the UK and Europe. This contributes to the increased
public access to environmental information, effective public
participation and access to justice required by the Århus
Convention. The SPRI will also deliver the system by which Scotland
will comply with the requirements of the European Pollutant Release
and Transfer Register.