FIRMS in Kirklees have been urged to act now to avoid falling foul of new environmental permit rules.
Regional business support programme CO2Sense Yorkshire said that under current rules, small scale users and handlers of waste don’t have to apply for an environmental permit from the Environment Agency to operate.
But from April, amendments to the regulations will withdraw a number of permitting exemptions.
Rachel Brakes (pictured), project manager for the CO2Sense, said the changes could affect businesses in a range of sectors, including composting, land spreading, land restoration, reclamation and improvement, use of waste for construction, metal recycling, manufacture and treatment of construction materials and timber products and waste management and recycling.
CO2Sense Yorkshire is urging businesses to look at the new rules to ensure they meet the requirements of the new revised exemptions.
If the revised limits cannot be met, CO2Sense is encouraging firms to apply now for an exemption under the existing regulations.
Applying before April will potentially give businesses more time to comply with the new rules or apply for an environmental permit.
Businesses can find out if they are exempt under current regulations by using a self-assessment questionnaire for each exempt activity. It can be found at www.co2sense.org.uk/legislation.
Said Rachel: “It’s vital that businesses make themselves aware of the changes and how they may be affected.
“We’ve put together a simple form which asks a series of questions for the existing exempt activity to see if they are eligible for exemption now.
“If the answer to all the questions is ‘yes’ then they can apply – and they should contact us to get free advice about how to get through the application process.”
