Fortnightly Bulletin – 24th October 2022
25 October 2022
Legal Updates
Greenhouse Gas Emissions Trading Scheme (Amendment) (No.3) Order 2022
These regulations will amend the Greenhouse Gas Emissions Trading Scheme Order 2020 and apply to the 2023 UK Emissions Trading Scheme (UK ETS) scheme year.
The amendments extend the UK ETS to include flights from Great Britain to Switzerland. Flights from Switzerland to Great Britain will be subject to the Swiss ETS.
Rules on the free allocation of ETS allowances for aviation activities will be updated. Aviation operators may apply for free allowances reflecting historic flights to Switzerland before the 1st January 2023. The submission deadline for this application is the 31st March 2023.
This Draft Order can be accessed here.
Beavers (England) Order 2022
This Order came into force on the 1st October 2022, and amends the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017 and the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981.
The order adds the Eurasian beaver to the list of European Protected Species in England under the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017.
This means that it is now an offence to deliberately capture, kill, disturb or injure beavers.
Amendments to the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 move the species to the list of native animals under Part 1A to Schedule 9, while also removing it from Part 1B, the list of animals normally no longer present. This continues the prohibition of releasing Eurasian beavers to the wild without a licence, without contradicting the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017.
This Order can be accessed here.
Articles of Interest
£211 Government Funding Programme For Battery Development
On the 21st October 2022, Business Secretary Jacob Rees-Mogg announced £211 million of government funding as part of the UK’s Faraday Battery Challenge.
The Faraday Battery Challenge began in 2017, and supports the development and manufacturing scale-up capabilities for batteries in the UK.
The funding aims to help the sector deliver 100,000 jobs in battery gigafactories and the supply chain by 2040. It will be delivered between 2022 and 2025 by UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) with support from the Faraday Institution, Innovate UK and UK Battery Industrialisation Centre (UKBIC).
UKRI Chief Executive Professor Dame Ottoline Leyser said:
“Advanced battery technology will play a central role in our lives and the economy, reducing our reliance on fossil fuels, creating new jobs and opening up new opportunities”.
Click here to access the full article.
HSBC Climate Change Adverts Banned by UK Watchdog
Two HSBC advertisements about the company’s work to tackle climate change have been banned by the UK’s advertising regulator, Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), for being misleading.
The adverts were seen at bus stops in London and Bristol last October, in the lead up to COP26. The posters outline HSBC’s efforts to plant trees and help customers achieve net zero emissions. For example, one poster included an image of waves crashing on a shore with text saying ‘Climate change doesn’t do borders. Neither do rising sea levels. That’s why HSBC is aiming to provide up to $1 trillion in financing and investment globally to help our clients transition to net zero”.
Another advert showed tree growth rings, with text saying “Climate changes doesn’t do borders. So in the UK, we’re helping to plant 2 million trees which will lock in 1.25 million tonnes of carbon over their lifetime”.
The watchdog said that HSBC posters ‘omitted material information’ about their activities, such as HSBCs contribution to carbon dioxide and greenhouse gas emissions.
ASA said that HSBC can no longer run adverts which promoted its plans to reduce harmful emissions, marking ASA’s first action against a bank for so-called ‘greenwashing’.
ASA said:
“Customers… would not expect that HSBC, in making unqualified claims about its environmentally beneficial work, would also be simultaneously involved in the financing of businesses which made significant contributions to carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions”.
Click here to access the full article.
Fines and Prosecutions
Clean Sweep on Illegal Waste Activities in Lincolnshire
The Environment Agency (EA) and partners, including Lincolnshire Police, Driver & Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA), South Kesteven Council and HM Revenue & Customs, have joined together to crack down on illegal waste activities in Lincolnshire – called ‘Operation Clean Sweep’.
On the 11th October 2022, a day of action took place in Lincolnshire to target waste criminals, with officers disrupting the activities of those believed to be involved in illegal waste activities.
‘Operation Clean Sweep’ had been carried out previously in three other Lincolnshire district council areas.
On the day of action, a number of vehicles were stopped and checked to ensure that they were operating in line with the law. 24 vehicles were stopped, resulting in:
- Four Fixed Penalty Notices (FPN) (of up to £300 each) were issued to unlicensed waste carriers with a further FPN to be issued by South Kesteven District Council
- Four prohibitions notices were issued by the Police and DVSA
- One further enforcement action to be taken
- Vehicles illegally carrying hazardous waste, scrap metal, waste white goods, green waste and end of life vehicles were also stopped and three follow-up enquiries are being made.
The EA also visited waste sites which were suspected to be operating illegally or in breach of their permit conditions. One site was found to be storing thousands of tyres illegally and has now been instructed to stop all activities.
Click here to read the full article.
Online Learning and Events
London Build 2022
16th – 17th November 2022
London Build is a two day event that offers 500+ speakers across 8 stages, including a sustainability stage, 350+ exhibitors, Meet the Buyers, live product demos, networking parties, entertainment, live music, the UK’s biggest Festival of Construction and endless networking opportunities with leading architects, developers, housebuilders, contractors, government and more.
The event includes stalls and talks focussed on helping businesses be more sustainable through technological innovations and advice.
Click here to register for free tickets to this event.
COP27 – Key Outcomes and the Impact on Climate Policy Presented by Pledge to Net Zero
21st November 2022 15:00-16:00
This webinar gives a practical overview of the key decisions made at COP27 and the practical impact for business, organisations and Pledge To Net Zero members especially.
In a practical 45 minutes, the webinar will give a clear summary of the key decisions made in Egypt and what this means for UK climate policy and businesses. The webinar is aimed especially at Pledge To Net Zero members, but all are welcome to join.
