Draft environmental policy statement

Defra has completed a consultation on its draft environmental policy statement. This focuses on five core principles that policymakers will be expected to consider:

• The integration principle – policymakers should look to embed environmental protection in fields of policy that impact the environment.
• The prevention principle – government policy should aim to prevent, reduce or mitigate harm.
• The rectification at source principle – if damage to the environment cannot be prevented, it should be tackled at its origin.
• The polluter pays principle – those who cause pollution or damage to the environment should be responsible for mitigation or compensation.
• The precautionary principle – where there is a threat of serious environmental damage, a lack of full scientific certainty shall not be used as a reason for postponing cost-effective measures to prevent degradation.

IEMA‘s response sets out the need for clarifications and amendments, including a recommendation for more direction on how the statement should be used in conjunction with other guidance. Read the full response at bit.ly/Defra_response

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