The Environmental Permitting (England and Wales) Regulations 2016

[F1 Closed-loop ground source heating and cooling systems: England E+W

6.— (1) For the purpose of paragraph 8(a)(i) of Schedule 2, the description is a closed-loop ground source heating or cooling system—

(a) which is fully sealed and does not take water from, or discharge water or fluids into, the environment, and

(b) where any borehole is used, the borehole is fully sealed and does not take water from the environment.

(2) For the purpose of paragraph 8(a)(ii) of Schedule 2, the conditions in relation to a groundwater activity of that description are that an operator of the system ensures that—

(a) the system is a closed-loop system only and that there is no discharge of pollutants other than the transfer of heat to the environment,

(b) the system does not cause pollution of surface water or groundwater,

(c) no part of the system is within a groundwater Source Protection Zone 1,

(d) no part of the system is within 50m of a well, spring or borehole used to supply water for domestic or food production purposes,

(e) no part of the system is within the following distance of a protected site or an ancient woodland—

(i) 20m, where the system supplies only residential premises and the maximum output of the system is 45kW or less,

(ii) 50m, where the system supplies—

(aa) only a single community building,

(bb) only residential premises and the maximum output of the system is more than 45kW,

(cc) only a single building that is not a community building or residential premises and which has a floor space of less than 1000m², or

(dd) subject to sub-paragraph (i), more than one building where the total floor space within those buildings combined is less than 1000m², or

(iii) 250m in any other case,

(f) the installation of the system does not mobilise any contaminants present in the subsurface to the extent that the pollution of groundwater occurs,

(g) no part of the system is adjacent to a septic tank or cesspit, including the infiltration system,

(h) all equipment installed in relation to the system complies with the relevant design and manufacturing standards set down in—

(i) the relevant British Standards, and

(ii) the relevant Ground Source Heat Pump Association standards, and

(i) the system is appropriately decommissioned when it ceases to be in operation so that there is no risk of pollutants or polluting matter entering groundwater.

(3) In this regulation—

“community building” includes a building used as a place of worship;

“relevant British Standards” means—

(a)

BS EN 378-1:2016+A1:2020 entitled “Refrigerating systems and heat pumps — Safety and environmental requirements, Part 1: Basic requirements, definitions, classification and selection criteria” published by the British Standards Institution on 30th November 2020,

(b)

BS EN 378-2:2016 entitled “Refrigerating systems and heat pumps — Safety and environmental requirements, Part 2: Design, construction, testing, marking and documentation” published by the British Standards Institution on 31st December 2016,

(c)

BS EN 378-3:2016+A1:2020 entitled “Refrigerating systems and heat pumps — Safety and environmental requirements, Part 3: Installation site and personal protection” published by the British Standards Institution on 30th November 2020,

(d)

BS EN 378-4:2016+A1:2019 entitled “Refrigerating systems and heat pumps — Safety and environmental requirements, Part 4: Operation, maintenance, repair and recovery” published by the British Standards Institution on 31st October 2019,

(e)

BS EN 805:2000 entitled “Water supply — Requirements for systems and components outside buildings” published by the British Standards Institution and coming into effect on 15th September 2000, and

(f)

BS 5930:2015+A1:2020 entitled “Code of practice for ground investigations” published by the British Standards Institution on 31st May 2020;

“relevant Ground Source Heat Pump Association standards” means—

(a)

the Closed-loop Vertical Borehole Design, Installation and Materials Standards, issue 1.0, dated 2020 and published by the Ground Source Heat Pump Association,

(b)

the Shallow Ground Source Standard, Version 2, dated January 2018 and published by the Ground Source Heat Pump Association, and

(c)

the Thermal Pile Design, Installation and Materials Standards, Version 2, dated September 2018 and published by the Ground Source Heat Pump Association.]

Textual Amendments

F1 Sch. 3 Pt. 3 paras. 6, (7) inserted (2.10.2023) by The Environmental Permitting (England and Wales) (Amendment) (England) Regulations 2023 (S.I. 2023/651), regs. 1(2), 5(b)(iv)