How to check your compliant with Environmental Legislation

In this LHConsulting blog post we will talk through the key steps in checking your compliant with environmental legislation.

Are you unsure what you need to comply?

Are you struggling to keep up to date with revisions and updates to legislation?

Then you have come to the right place!

What is Environmental Legislation?

Before we start lets quickly run through what environmental legislation is…

Environmental legislation governs what we must do in the UK in relation to Environmental Management. Legislation varies widely however examples of the types of areas it covers are as follows:

• Waste management
• Water
• Energy
• Air quality
• Packaging

Although simple this will now give you a better understanding of what environmental legislation is and what it’s trying to achieve.

Step one – Establish which Environmental Legislation is applicable to you

So the first thing you need to do is establish which legislation is applicable to your company.

If you have the skills and expertise in-house to do this then that is great! However, this is the reason why companies will then employ the support of an external consultancy – Such as LHConsulting to help them establish which legislation is applicable to them and what they need to do to comply with it!

Step two

The next thing to do is plan how you are going to check compliance with the applicable legislation. The most effective way to do this is through a comprehensive audit. A legal compliance audit may include looking at the following…

• Training documents
• Environmental legislation register
• Environmental aspects & impacts
• Emergency preparedness & response plans
• Waste management documentation
• Permits and exemptions

Due to the complexity and critical nature of the process I would recommend seeking external support to undertake the audit.

Step three

The third step is to undertake the audit in order to establish any gaps in compliance. You can then put effective control measures in place to ensure you are legally compliant going forward.

Step four

The final stage is to repeat!

It is recommended that you carry out this process on a regular basis (Usually annually). This should be supported by regular environmental legislation updates so that you can rest assured you are aware of all changes.

As easy as that?

Yes as easy as that!

I really hope this post helped!

LHConsulting is an ISO Management Systems and Legislation Support Consultancy based in the West Midlands.

We support businesses and individuals to make compliance easy.

All of our services cover the breadth of the UK and we work with all types of businesses including those based in small towns and major cities including London, Birmingham and Manchester. 

To view a list of applicable legislation check out Gov.UK