Understanding groundwater protection

Will the LPA consult the Environment Agency or Local Authority Contaminated Land/Environmental Health department for advice?

The Environment Agency are Statutory consultees for the developments set out in schedule 4 of The Town and Country Planning (Development Management Procedure) (England) Order 2015 and certain aspects under the Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA) Regulations.

Local Planning Authorities (LPA) may provide local guidance about when the different types of land quality reports (sometimes also known as geo-environmental reports) must be submitted for sites especially where contamination may be an issue.

If consultation with the Environment Agency or Local Authority Contaminated Land department will be needed, you should consider asking them for pre-application advice.

You can request advice from the Environment Agency using this pre-planning application¹ enquiry form (preliminary opinion). There is a charge for more detailed pre-application planning advice such as reviews of draft Preliminary Risk Assessments. You can find out more about this service in the Environment Agency’s planning and marine licence advice: standard terms for our charges².

Many LPAs also offer a ‘pre- application enquiry service’ which enables a prospective developer to obtain guidance on the information, including where necessary land contamination reports, which must be submitted with a formal planning application.

Find your Local Planning Authority³.

1. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pre-planning-application-enquiry-form-preliminary-opinion
2. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/planning-and-marine-licence-advice-standard-terms-for-our-charges
3. https://www.planningportal.co.uk/find-your-local-planning-authority