The Environmental Permitting (England and Wales) Regulations 2016

Protected undertakings, railways and bridges E+W

10.—(1) For the purposes of this paragraph, “ protected undertaking” means the undertakings referred to in paragraph 1(4) of Schedule 22 to the 1991 Act, as read with sub-paragraphs (4A) and (5) of that paragraph.

(2) The regulator must not exercise its functions under these Regulations in relation to any flood risk activity in a manner that prejudices the exercise of any statutory power, authority or jurisdiction by a person carrying on a protected undertaking.

(3) Sub-paragraph (2) does not have the effect of exempting any person carrying on a protected undertaking from the requirement to hold an environmental permit.

(4) The regulator must obtain the consent of the person carrying on a protected undertaking where—

(a) the regulator is proposing to take steps under paragraph 9(1) that will directly or indirectly interfere with works or property (or with the use of works or property) vested in, or under the control of, a person carrying on that undertaking, and

(b) that interference will adversely affect those works, that property (or with the use of those works or that property) or the carrying on of that undertaking.

(5) Sub-paragraph (4) does not apply where the regulator is required to act in an emergency but, in such a case, the regulator must notify the person carrying on the protected undertaking as soon as possible of any steps that have been taken under paragraph 9(1).

(6) Without prejudice to the preceding provisions of this paragraph, nothing in these Regulations that relates to a flood risk activity authorises any person, except with the consent of the railway company in question, to interfere with—

(a) any railway bridge or any other work connected with a railway, or

(b) the structure, use or maintenance of a railway or the traffic on it.

(7) Where consent is required under sub-paragraph (4) or (6), the consent may be subject to reasonable conditions but must not be unreasonably withheld.

(8) There must be a referral to the arbitration of a single arbitrator, to be appointed by agreement between the parties to the dispute or, in default of agreement, by the President of the Institution of Civil Engineers M1 , of any dispute as to whether—

(a) anything done or proposed to be done interferes or will interfere as mentioned in sub-paragraphs (4) and (6);

(b) any consent for the purposes of this paragraph is being unreasonably withheld;

(c) any condition subject to which any such consent has been given is reasonable.

(9) Nothing in this Schedule affects any enactment requiring the consent of any government department, Minister or Welsh Minister for the erection of a bridge, or any powers exercisable by any government department, Minister or Welsh Minister in relation to a bridge.

Marginal Citations

M1 Registered charity number 210252.