---

Dept for Environment Food and Rural Affairs

Answer

Mr. Whittingdale: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the estimated cost per farm is of the introduction of integrated pollution prevention and control requirements. [180373] Mr. Morley: The Pollution Prevention and Control (England and Wales) Regulations 2000 (the PPC Regulations), which implement the 1996 EC Directive on Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control (IPPC), apply to large intensive livestock installations with more than 40,000 places for poultry, 2000 places for production pigs, or 750 places for sows. IPPC will ensure that the environmental impacts of these farms are assessed and minimised. New farms must apply for a PPC permit before they can carry out their operations and existing farms must apply for a permit by 31 January 2007. Regulators are required by statute to recover their costs from the operators they regulate. In England and Wales, the Environment Agency has made a particular effort to lower the cost of regulation through the development of an `off the shelf' permit for farmers, provided that they can comply with "Standard Farming Installation Rules". In the period 2004-05, the standard fee for a PPC permit application is 3,024. Once a permit is issued, the Environment Agency will charge an annual subsistence fee to cover the costs incurred in assessing compliance and maintaining the permit. These fees are 2,095 for a standard permit holder or 2,626 for the largest farms (more than 400,000 poultry, 20,000 production pigs, or 7,500 sows). For the purposes of the permit application, some farmers may decide to employ consultants to help them to complete the necessary records, audits and plans. The Standard Farming Rules, which were developed in consultation with industry, are based on "Best Available Techniques" (BAT) that aims to balance the cost to the operator against the benefits to the environment. Some of these techniques may be expensive, particularly for those older farms that have suffered from lack of capital investment in recent years. The changes will be sought through improvement conditions established on a farm-by-farm basis, at timescales agreed between the Environment Agency and the farmer.

Secondary information

Type

Written question

Reference

180373; 423 c631-2W

Session

2003-04

Subjects

Costs EU law Farms Integrated pollution control Pollution control Livestock industry Regulation

Link

View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk