Environmental permitting

All permitted processes are inspected regularly to ensure compliance with the conditions of the permit. How regularly this occurs will depend on the risk rating established at the previous inspection. A process with a low rating may only be inspected every three years, whilst a process with a high rating will be inspected at least three times a year.

The risk assessment is divided into two parts:

• The environmental impact appraisal assesses the potential impact of that process in that particular location. This is unlikely to change, unless the process changes or the BAT requirements require the operator to upgrade the process. Many of the factors in this part of the assessment are outside the control of the operator, such as the proximity of nearby housing

• The operator performance appraisal is a measure of how well the site is run, and compliance with the conditions of the permit. Operators can have a significant affect on this part of the rating by the way that they manage the risk to the environment caused by their process

Reduced fee activities may be inspected less than once a year.

Further information on risk assessment is in chapter 27 of the general guidance manual.