Getting and staying compliant with environmental laws

By Remsol Limited

13 Sep 2013

According to a recently reported study by consultancy Trucost, there is almost no difference in the size of fines handed down to large firms versus their smaller counterparts.

The implications of these findings are clear: you may be a small business, but if something goes wrong and you're prosecuted for an environmental offence, your smaller stature won't mean you get off lightly. Likewise, bigger firms won't necessarily be fined more.

According to the Trucost study, the average fine was £9,500 for both large firms and SMEs.

Whilst this may be affordable for larger businesses, it could be very damaging to the cashflow of an SME.

"Businesses of all sizes should really consider conducting yearly compliance audits, identifying the legislation that they need to comply with, checking to ensure that they are, identifying any gaps and developing action plans to close them," said Rachael Haywood, environmental advisor at Remsol. "This way, there shouldn't be any surprises and the threat of prosecution will be greatly diminished."

So, where should you look first?

Well, until you know what legislation applies to your business, you can't possibly know whether or not you currently comply with it, so a good starting point is to think about what it is you do and where there are obvious interactions with the environment - and a chance that, if something goes wrong, harm could occur - and then look for legislation that applies to those activities.

However, this can be quite a lengthy process, especially if you're not familiar with environmental legislation and where to find associated guidance.

So, another approach is to look at the environmental offences that are prosecuted most often, identify the relevant laws and then check to see if any of your business activities could be captured by these rules. Commonly prosecuted offences are for: unlawful discharges of pollutants into rivers and streams; failures to comply with the Duty of Care for waste by sending waste to unlicensed sites or using hauliers that aren't appropriately registered as waste carriers; and packaging waste offences.

Compliance auditing needn't be overly complex or expensive. There is lots of accessible guidance on environmental compliance provided by the Environment Agency and on the www.gov.uk website.

However, a practiced eye can also make the process easier and quicker. Of course, prosecution and fines are only one part of the story: getting it badly wrong can have disastrous consequences for your reputation, which SMEs naturally have to work even harder to gain.

Enjoyed this? Read more from Remsol Limited

Latest news

1

Construction begins on new Civil Service office building in Talbot Gateway Alan McBride Muse Will Town Defence Infrastructure Organisation Jennifer Chard Defence Business Services Cllr Lynn Williams Blackpool Council Garry Bowker Vinci

Construction begins on new Civil Service office building in Talbot Gateway

20 May 2025

2

Skiddle raises over £750,000 for charities Skiddle cheque presentation to Alder Hey Hospital

Skiddle raises over £750,000 for charities

20 May 2025

3

Former Victorian Hotel approved for residential conversion The site

Former Victorian Hotel approved for residential conversion

19 May 2025

4

REVOLUTION PARK: Work starts on Darwen’s new home of advanced manufacturing Oliver Webber, Tracy Clavell-Bate and Tim Webber from Barnfield Group with Cllr Phil Riley, second from right, Leader of Blackburn with Darwen Council

REVOLUTION PARK: Work starts on Darwen’s new home of advanced manufacturing

19 May 2025

5

Two Cuckoo Gins named winners in The Gin Guide Awards 2025 Mark Long

Two Cuckoo Gins named winners in The Gin Guide Awards 2025

19 May 2025

Background image for hub sign up block

LBV Hub

Leverage Lancashire Business View platforms

Post your news
Post your events
Post your offers
Build your network
Improve your SEO
Gain coverage in the magazine
Sign-up
Events
LBV122 May/June Launch Event
121 Lancashire Business View Magazine Launch
Networking
21 May 2025

LBV122 May/June Launch Event

Lancaster and Morecambe College, Lancaster, LA1 2TY

08:30 - 10:30

Sub36 Networking
Networking
11 Jun 2025

Sub36 Networking

British Jewellery School, Scorton, PR3 1BA

15:00 - 17:00

Lancashire Net Zero Carbon Conference
Net Zero Carbon Social 1200pxtrident 2
Networking
18 Jun 2025

Lancashire Net Zero Carbon Conference

Crow Wood Hotel & Spa Resort, Burnley, BB12 0RT

08:30 - 13:00

Lancashire Built Environment Conference 2025
BEC 315 X 315 Px
Networking
25 Sep 2025

Lancashire Built Environment Conference 2025

Blackpool Football Club, Blackpool, FY1 6HX

08:30 - 13:00

CMI Level 5 Project Management Course
UCLanAerialCampus.jpg.jpg
LBV Hub Seminars
21 Feb 2025 - 21 Feb 2026

CMI Level 5 Project Management Course

Preston Campus, Preston, PR1 2HE

08:00 - 17:00

CMI Level 5 Management and Leadership Course
UCLanAerialCampus.jpg.jpg
LBV Hub Seminars
21 Feb 2025 - 21 Feb 2026

CMI Level 5 Management and Leadership Course

Preston Campus, Preston , PR1 2HE

09:00 - 17:00

RISE - The Academy for Female Leaders and Managers
WENDY BOWERS RISE Illustrstion copy.jpg.jpg
LBV Hub Seminars
02 Apr 2025 - 08 Oct 2025

RISE - The Academy for Female Leaders and Managers

East Lancashire Chamber of Commerce, Clayton le Moors, BB5 5JR

09:00 - 15:30

Preston Freelancer Meet-Up: May
Freelancer Meet-Up May.png.png
LBV Hub Networking
22 May 2025 - 22 May 2025

Preston Freelancer Meet-Up: May

society1, Coworking Space, Preston, PR1 3LT

10:00 - 11:30

Amber River True Bearing quarterly investment seminar
LBV Hub Seminars
22 May 2025 - 22 May 2025

Amber River True Bearing quarterly investment seminar

Cottons Hotel & Spa , Knutsford, WA16 0SU

16:00 - 18:00

The Business Network Central & East Lancashire
LBV Hub Networking
22 May 2025 - 22 May 2025

The Business Network Central & East Lancashire

Mytton Fold, Langho, BB6 8AB

11:30 - 14:15

Liverpool Business Expo 2025
https---cdn.evbuc.com-images-881365363-4862066883-1-original.20241023-085714.jpeg.jpg
LBV Hub Awards
23 May 2025 - 23 May 2025

Liverpool Business Expo 2025

Aintree Racecourse , Liverpool , L9 5AS

09:00 - 15:00

Advantage: AI – A Workshop for Business Leaders – May 29
Artboard 15.png.png
LBV Hub Seminars
29 May 2025 - 29 May 2025

Advantage: AI – A Workshop for Business Leaders – May 29

Door4 Office, Burnley Wharf, Manchester Road, Burnley, BB11 1JG

09:00 - 11:00

Advertise with us

Reaching 50,000 members, our print, digital and event platforms offer a fantastic way to raise your business profile and help you grow.

Find out more LBV122 Online Graphic
Subscribe now

Weekly news bulletin