Impact of Environmental Legislation on Building Development - Report Example

Impact of environmental legislation on building development An Information pack Contents On information pack 3 Key word 3 Target readers 3 U.K. legislation for construction and wildlife 4 Legislation exclusive to England and Wales 4 Legislations common to UK 5 Issue of licence 6 Impact of regulations on construction sector 7 Need for analysing eco - sensitivity of sites 9 Important sources for wildlife and ecological information 10 Solutions Proposed 11 Conclusions 12 References 13 On the information pack The primary objective of this information pack is to provide comprehensive information on the major type of legislations that would have impacts on the building development initiatives in UK and Wales. This report would be able to help the clients to evaluate their construction or development plan against the legislation and hence to prepare them appropriately in line with the prevailing regulations. As a result the clients would be educated on the ecological impacts and a wider interest for environmental conservation in the development initiatives could also be created (Collis and Tyldesley ,1993). Also, this would also help the public to understand the penalty applicable if any blatant violations of the regulations are made. Key words: environmental management, wild life protection, biodiversity, sustainable construction. Target readers: Clients, builders, contractors, designers, researchers, environmental planners and regional public representatives. UK Legislation for construction and wildlife European Commission in its sixth and the present action plan for the environmental management termed as “Environment : 2010 Our future Our Choice” has identified nature and the biodiversity as two priority areas that need to be given proper attention to ensure sustainable development in a region. In this connection various action plans in the form of regulations and community participative strategies are being formulated and put these ideas into practice. As builders and construction contractors are the most involved group with the nature and biodiversity , an awareness on the acts relating to the legislations and regulations would help the plan the development process without infringing the prevailing regulations and norms (Begon et al, 1996, Ratcliffe, 1977). The significant legislations by the UK government to manage construction while preserving the wildlife are as follows. Legislations exclusive to England and Wales The Country Side and Rights of Way Act 2000(The Stationery Office, 2000) This legislation is exclusive to England and Wales inorder to strengthen the protection given to Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs) and other wildlife locations. The duty of its strict enforcement is rested with the government ministers and officials of both England and Wales. This is the important legislation that has strong implication on construction contractors. It is now considered as criminal offence to disturb and damage those nesting birds and species which is protected under various schedules. The Protection Badgers Act, 1992 This legislation is extended to England, Scotland and Wales inorder to arrest the improper activities of badger digging and baiting (The Stationery Office, 1992 ; English Nature,1995) The Town and Country Planning (Trees) Regulations, 1999 The legislation have been brought into force for England and Wales inorder to protect various species of the trees. The local planning authority would place a order on the protection of certain trees or their group for the proper conservation of these biomass for the purpose of better living environment. The Hedgerow regulations, 1997(The Stationery Office, 1997) This regulation is applicable in England and Wales and provides adequate protection to the hedgerows in the country side. The local planning authorities in England and Wales are empowered to issue notifications to control the removal of hedgerows. Any violation of this rule would be treated as criminal offence and hence any builder or construction contractor would have to obtain a prior permission in the case of any such necessities. Legislations common to UK The Wildlife and country side Act 1981 (The Stationery Office, 1981) The act which was passed in 1981 is the prime legislation in Great Britain to protect the wildlife. Later this was amended as Wild life and country side (Amendment) act and Country side and Rights of the way Act, 2000. The emphasis given in these acts are to designate certain areas as Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in-order to protect the habitat and specific species . Some the species like great crested newts are the one which are protected under the purview f Wildlife and Country Act (English Nature, 2001). Conservation regulations, 1994 Using these regulation certain areas are designated as Special Areas of Conservation (SAC) based on the threats faced and the importance attached to a particular habitat or species. This regulation has been prepared based on the European union directive and the local level planning authorities can grant the permission for any development initiative only after ascertaining that this project wouldn’t cause any adverse impact to the site. Violation of these directives would be considered as a serious offence and the further actions would be initiated (CIRIA, 2004). Issue of license The major situations under which the license is usually issued are for surveys, development and for conservation. The license is granted based on the nature of impact and the level of the prevailing protection given to species through various legislations. Even when the legislations prevent the direct granting of license, they could be obtained under certain exceptions. The modification of developmental plan is necessary whenever a project or part of the project would disturb the local habitat of the species or biodiversity (Gilbert and Anderson , 1998 ; Sutherland and Hill, 1995). A detailed survey is mandatory process to ensure proper information have been collected in connection with the application preparation. The license is usually issued based on the observation that development activities have some social purpose or the license issuing authority feel that the no satisfactory alternatives are available and the construction or development activities would not be harmful in the effort to maintain the population of a particular species. When any development process poses threat to the species protected under Wildlife and Country Side act, 1981 , only remote chance exist to grant the licence. Still , when the development initiatives planned have an objective of protection of public health and safety , protection of the people against the spread of diseases or any measure to prevent serious damage to livestock or their foodstuff , crops, vegetables etc the prohibition imposed under WCA could be relaxed (CIRIA, 2004) As per the information released by the World conservation Congress held in the year 2001 it is understood that nearly , 11 percent of birds, 25 percent of mammals, plants and vertebrates are facing the serious threat of extinction. In UK large number of species have been lost over the last few years due to uncontrolled development process or by the natural replacement as a result of exotic varieties. The loss of species need to be seen from the perspective of loss in the genetic diversity, these species could be a critical component in some drug production process or in the production of commercial product that is high in demand. This is evident from the fact that large scale destruction of tropical rain forest and related ecosystem problems like impact of the local climate, problems to the local soil and finally affecting the carbon balance. Impact of the regulation on construction sector (CIRIA, 2004) (i) For clients : The clients must be aware of the nature of the site chosen for the construction. Any error or negligence on the part of the clients would lead to the delayed start of the projects which finally results in the cost over run. Some times , the clients would be forced even to abandon the project due to the impact it could cause to the wild life and biodiversity. In order to avoid such type of situations it is always better for the clients to have a prior discussion on the wildlife regulations with the project team and necessary inputs of the conservation measures shall be communicated to them. Further, to gain a basic information of the details of existing legislations this information pack would be of much help. (ii) Planners & designers : The issues like ignorance on wildlife issues, inadequate time allocated for the survey or for obtaining necessary clearance or licence would result in the sudden stoppage of projects on wildlife issues if that particular area is covered under any legislation. This would also result in considerable escalation of projects costs arising from the repeat of the survey work . Also, this could also adversely effect the project viability when the opportunities to mitigate the impact are overlooked. Thus planners and designer must undertake detailed information collection about the site and also explore the possible reductive measures that could be adopted. The planning and design document could also incorporate all these information thus making the proposal more viable. This information pack would be able to give the planners and builders a brief idea on the legislations currently followed in this aspect. Contractors : Ignorance on the site information regarding the wildlife aspect or lack of commitment to follow the regulations in the construction programme are the important situations faced by contractors on wildlife related issues. Even any damage or harm caused to the protected species during the construction phase would result in penalties like imprisonment and extended delay resulting in cost escalation of the project. Also, it could create a bad opinion in public which could also adversely effect the future business of the contractor. Hence, before initiating any activity on a new site, it would be better for the contractor to comprehensively understand the wildlife protection ensures proposed by the planners or designers. Also, support from a ecologist for a complex or huge projects to take appropriate steps in this connection is also appropriate. The information pack presented here would also be of much help to the contractors to gain basic information on the important legislations to be considered before construction process is initiated. Need for analysing the eco - sensitivity of sites Most of the construction activities are depending on heavy machines. The operators employed to operate by the contractors or builders might not be aware of the ecologically sensitive aspect of that particular site. Even if the clients as well the basic planners for any development project are unaware of the ecological problems prevalent to that site it is the duty of the contractor to explore the impact of the different type of construction process adopted by them on a site. Figure 1 shows the details of a barrier fence provided to protect some animal species in the area adjacent to t he construction site. As the detailed information on that site alone was collected, the presence of a protected space adjacent to site was not known to the contractor. The reckless movement of the construction machinery resulted in the damage to the protective fence and the driver was prosecuted. Based on this incidence , it must be understood that as it takes only a fraction of moment to inflict any damage which could not the rectified. And, it is better to create awareness to all site staff on the potential ecological threats at every sites. Placing clear sign posts that gives proper information should also be given priority to avoid any unprecedented rise in the project cost in terms of penalties and compensations. Figure 1 : The need for wildlife information in construction - the protective barrier fence damaged during construction resulted in prosecution (CIRIA, 2004) Important sources for wildlife and ecological information (CIRIA, 2004) The agencies and local bodies that can provide necessary information on wildlife and ecological aspects are as give below Statutory nature Conservation Organisations (SNCOs) : The important SNCOs present in England and Wales are English nature and Country side Council for Wales. The locally available ecological expert. Most of the construction groups or clients employs or hire the service on an ecologist to understand the presence of any issues related to ecology and wildlife on any particular site. The local wildlife trust which operates as part of Wildlife Trust partnership would be able to provide authentic information on wildlife related matters. Societies that are operating at regional level under the names local natural history society , natural history society, local wildlife recorders or local bird watching society would have good account f the information on the different type species inhabited in various locations and also on the degree of protection in these locations . Partnerships with biodiversity committees would also help to gain authentic information on wildlife and ecology related aspects Solutions proposed. The solutions proposed are primarily the following. Extensive training programme need to be undertaken among the entire team of employees in the organisation regarding the new legislations and the incorporations that need to be made in all the future planning and design operations. The contractors involved in the construction and other development operations need to be made ware of the ecological sensitivity of the site and hence to take appropriate protections in the operations. A detailed information boards which displays the important steps initiated to protect or safeguard the ecosystem shall be displayed. Also, any precaution that need to be considered in the site too could be elaborated in the information. Involving a locally available ecologist in the planning process to understand in details about the fragile locations and aspects in a particular place. Preparing and distributing periodical that give information and initiatives have been undertaken in the regions of England and Wales in connection with the wildlife and ecological management. Conclusion The efforts to create a sustainable construction engineering facility can be materialized only if the necessary technology inputs are supplemented with the required information levels on ethics , environment, aesthetics and heritage . The uncontrolled development with least concern for the ecology and environment have caused irreparable damage to the environment. Thus legislative interventions become necessary to ensure the sustainable habitat conditions for all living beings on the earth. The strict regulations and the enforcement in this direction would certainly make the construction industry sensitive to these otherwise considered trivial factors. The building construction companies and the property developers across U.K. and Wales could hence certainly contribute significantly by appropriately planning the business strategies incorporating the component of environmental sustainability. References Begon, M; Harper, J and Townsend, C (1996) Ecology , Blackwell Science Publishing. CIRIA (2004), Working with wildlife - A resource and training pack for construction industry, London CIRIA (1995) , A Clients Guide to Greener Construction , London Collis, I and Tyldesley, D (1993), Natural Assets: Non-Statutory Sites of Importance for Nature Conservation DEFRA (n.d.) , European Species Guidance Note (WLF II [Rev.10/02], DEFRA – www.defra.gov.uk) English Nature (2001), Great Crested Newt Mitigation Guidelines English Nature 2000 Sector Analysis – Construction (English Nature Internal Report) English Nature (1995)Badgers – Guidelines for developers Gilbert, O L and Anderson, P (1998) , Habitat Creation and Repair , Oxford University Press. Otters and River Habitat Management (Environment Agency 2nd edn, 1999) Planning with wildlife (RSPB Advice Sheet) National Trust (2001) Wildlife and buildings – technical guidance for architects, builders, building managers and others Ratcliffe, D A (1977), A Nature Conservation Review , Cambridge University Press. Sutherland, W J and Hill, D A (1995) Managing habitats for conservation , Cambridge University Press. The Stationery Office (2000), Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 The Stationery Office(1997), The Hedgerow Regulations 1997 The Stationery Office (1992), Protection of Badgers Act The Stationary office (1991) , WCA Amendment (1991) The Stationary office (1981 )Wildlife and Countryside Act (1981) Read More