Environmental regulations

Citation

(2009), "Environmental regulations", Nutrition & Food Science, Vol. 39 No. 5. https://doi.org/10.1108/nfs.2009.01739eab.033

Environmental regulations

Article Type: Food facts From: Nutrition & Food Science, Volume 39, Issue 5.

The Environmental Damage Regulations could present a serious threat to businesses that do not take precautions, warns major insurance broker Jardine Lloyd Thompson.

Since the regulations were enacted in March, businesses are now compelled to notify the authorities if environmental damage has occurred or is threatened to non-owned water, land, protected species, natural habitats and sites of special scientific interest.

Other interested parties, such as environmental groups, can also report actual or suspected environmental damage.

Businesses will then be required to take steps to prevent the threat of environmental damage. If damage has already occurred, they will be liable for any costs incurred to remedy or prevent further damage.

They must return the affected resource to the condition it was in before the environmental damage occurred. If the damage is such that the original condition cannot be restored, businesses may be required to pay the costs of “complementary remediation” to restore or create a similar habitat, possibly at another site.

Businesses might also be ordered to pay “compensatory remediation” costs to provide an interim environmental resource while the original resource recovers. Failure to cooperate will result in financial penalties over and above these remediation costs. The new regulations, therefore, clearly represent an increased financial risk to all businesses.

Ian Edwards of JLT's Food & Drink Practice said: “Food and drink manufacturers and processors should recognise that it is not just so-called ‘dirty industries’, such as waste disposal or chemical processors, that are at risk of causing environmental damage.

“Businesses in the food and drink sector should ensure they fully understand the additional environmental risks they now face. They may feel that their ingredients, products or processes pose a very low potential risk to the environment, but seemingly innocuous substances in the wrong place can represent a serious pollution risk.

“The Environmental Liability insurance market has already risen to the challenge posed by the new Regulations and widened cover to include costs incurred under them.

“JLT's Food & Drink Practice incorporates insurance broking professionals, risk management and environmental consultants along with technical claims management specialists and has provided industry specific insurance and risk management solutions to the food and drink industry in the UK and Ireland for over 20 years.”