CITY OF LONDON

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City of London > Services > Environment and planning > Pollution > Pollution Control
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Environmental information regulations
Pollution Control
Pollution control - air - Part A and Part B authorisation
Pollution control - air handling units
Pollution control - air quality
Pollution control - asbestos
Pollution control - clean air act approval
Pollution control - construction information and advice
Pollution control - contaminated land
Pollution control - hazardous substances
Pollution control - inspection and regulation
Pollution control - Long term trends in air quality in the City
Pollution control - noise
Pollution control - nuisances
Pollution control - radiation monitoring
Pollution control - water

Environmental Pollution Control


The City of London has a specialist team of Environmental Health, Scientific and Technical Officers who are responsible for enforcing standards and offering advice to businesses and the public on a wide range of pollution  and housing issues. These include:-

Download our guide services leaflet (271kb)

 

Complaints of nuisance and general public health problems are dealt with by the Team through inspection, advice and the service of Abatement Notices where necessary. Any Abatement Notices making requirements as to the prohibition (or recurrence) of nuisances are monitored for compliance and appropriate action is taken to enforce those requirements and bring breaches of these notices to legal proceedings.

The provisions of the Clean Air Act 1993 and the Environmental Protection Act 1990 are administered in relation to the control of smoke and nuisance, the regulation of chimney heights and the Authorisation of scheduled processes.

Environment award

The City of London is subject to a large amount of construction related activity. A Code of Construction Practice for Deconstruction and Construction Sites has been developed to ensure that activities are undertaken in a way that has minimal impact upon the environment. The code details standards and best practice that should be followed by all contractors.

The City of London Corporation is keen to reward innovation in the industry and encourage activities that push the boundaries of environmental responsibility. The Considerate Contractors scheme now has an Environment Award which recognises such achievement.

The City is looking for examples of innovation in any of the following areas:

  • Noise and Dust Control
  • Energy and Carbon Reduction
  • Air Pollution Control
  • Waste Management
  • Land Contamination
  • Sustainability

For further information or advice please contact:

Tel +44 (0)20 7332 3630
Fax +44 (0)20 7332 1623
Email DES-Enquiries@cityoflondon.gov.uk

Pollution prevention and control

Local Authorities and the Environment Agency regulate industrial processes to ensure the reduction and prevention of emissions to air, water and land.

The legislation controlling these emissions has changed recently. New legislation has now been introduced through the Pollution Prevention and Control (PPC) Regulations, which are slowly replacing the previous schemes of Integrated Pollution Control (IPC) and Local Air Pollution Control (LAPC).

The PPC Regulations introduce three separate, but linked, systems of pollution control;

  • Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control (IPPC) – covers installations known as A(1) installations, for example a Power Station, which are regulated by the Environment Agency
  • Local Authority Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control (LA-IPPC) – covers installations known as A(2) installations, for example large scale glass manufacturing, regulated by local authorities.
  • Local Authority Pollution Prevention Control (LAPPC) – covers installations known as Part B Installations, for example, dry cleaners, local authorities also regulate these. These conditions extend only to emissions to air.

All three systems require the operators of certain industrial and other installations to obtain a permit to operate. Once an operator has submitted a permit application, the regulator then decides whether to issue a permit. If one is issued, it will include conditions aimed at reducing and preventing pollution to acceptable levels.

Part A1 and A2 installations

There are no 'Part A' processes in The City of London although there is a gas fired power station in Smithfield (within the London borough of Islington) and this has a small contribution to air quality in The City. These regimes have a wider scope of control than the previous regimes, and include the regulation of air, water, land, odour, waste, energy, accident prevention, noise and vibrations.

Part B installations

The City is responsible for permitting and inspecting all Part B installations. Part B installations are those that have the potential to cause air pollution only and include activities such as:

  • dry cleaning
  • vehicle re-sprayers
  • furniture manufacture
  • cement batching plants, and
  • petrol stations and the uploading of petrol

There are three Part B installations currently operating that hold a LAPPC permit. The permit places limitations on the level of emissions into the atmosphere. These are outlined in the table below:

Permit holders for Part B installations in the City

Company Address Activity Emissions to air
City Slickers 34-36 Lime Street, London, EC3M 7AT Dry Cleaning Installation Volatile Organic Compounds
City Slickers 57-60 Aldgate High Street, London, EC3N 1AL Dry Cleaning Installation Volatile Organic Compounds
City Clean 24 Goswell Road, London, EC1M 7AA Dry Cleaning Installation Volatile Organic Compounds
 

Dry cleaners

Recently, new legislation, the Solvent Emissions Regulations 2004 (SED Regs) has been introduced to limit further emissions of VOCs through the use of organic solvents. This gives effects to European Directive 1999/13/EC, which is commonly referred to as the Solvent Emissions Directive.

All new dry cleaning installations using organic solvents (in particular perchloroethylene (PER), hydrocarbon solvent (HSC) and siloxane) must have a permit before operations commence. However, if a business opened before 1 April 2001 it must have completed an application form by the 31 October 2006, to ensure compliance with the requirements of the SED Regulations/PPC Regulations by 31 October 2007.

Download and print the application form for a permit (62kb)

 

Public register

The City maintains a register of all authorised processes in The City. This register can be viewed Monday to Friday during normal office hours at:

City of London
Department of Environmental Services
PO Box 270
Guildhall London
EC2P 2EJ
Tel 020 7332 3630
Fax 020 7332 1316
Email

There is no charge for accessing the public register. Any photocopying of information will incur an administration charge.

Further information and guidance

Further information and guidance on the pollution prevention and control regimes is available through the relevant sections on the “Pollution Prevention and Control” page on the Defra website.


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