Environmental health law is a wide-ranging, detailed and complex body of law within the UK. Bassett’s Environmental Health Procedures is an established and essential reference source which provides an accessible entry into enforcement and administrative procedures for environmental health. The main legal procedures used in the environmental health field are presented as flow charts supported by explanatory text.
This ninth edition refines the structure introduced in the eighth edition, with each chapter addressing a single topic. It has introduced the titles of the corresponding legislation in Scotland and Northern Ireland where there is such legislation. The book has been updated throughout to reflect new practices, legislation and statutory guidance. Specifically, the ninth edition contains new content on antisocial behaviour and significant updates to sections on:
- Enforcement and administration
- Environmental protection
- Food safety
- Housing
- Public health.
Environmental health officers/practitioners and students will find this book invaluable. It will also be an essential reference for all those whose responsibilities demand they keep abreast of current environmental health practices.
INTRODUCTION
- Environmental health law
- Enforcing authorities
- The framework for enforcement policies
- Local authority enforcement policies
- Company and organisation policies
- Enforcement options
- Covert surveillance
- Environmental Information Regulations 2004
- Delegation of authority
- Powers of entry
- Service of Notice by local authorities
- Authentication of documents
- Information regarding ownerships
- The commissioner for local administration (The Ombudsman)
- Further reading
PUBLIC HEALTH ACTS
- General procedural provisions
- Definitions
- Repairs of drains, private sewers etc by LA's
- Blocked private sewers
- Blocked drains, private sewers etc
- Overflowing leaking cesspools
- Defective sanitary conveniences
- Closure or restriction of polluted water supply
- Licensing of camping sites
- Removal of noxious matter
- Accumulations of rubbish
- Cleansing of filthy or verminous premises
Repairs to sewerage, drainage and sanitary conveniences
Miscellaneous
BUILDING ACT 1984
- General procedural provisions
- Definitions
- Defective drainage to existing buildings
- Paving of yards and passages
- Sanitary conveniences: provision/replacement
- Conversion of earth closets etc to water closets
- Water supply for new homes
- Means of escape from certain buildings
- Defective premises
- Ruinous and defective buildings
- Demolition of buildings
- Dangerous buildings
Drainage
Sanitary appliances
Miscellaneous
WATER INDUSTRY ACT 1991
Water supply provisions
- General procedural provisions
- Definitions
- Control over public water supplies
- Control over private water supplies
- Relaxations of quality standards for private water supplies
- Relaxations of quality standards for public water supplies
Water supply
PUBLIC HEALTH (CONTROL OF DISEASE) ACT 1984
- General procedural provisions
- Definitions
- Key to powers available for the control of disease
- Powers available for the control of specific diseases
- Proper officer
- Notification of disease
- Cleansing and disinfection of premises and articles
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION ACT 1990 (WITH NOISE ACT 1996 AND THE CLEAN NEIGHBOURHOODS ACT 2005)
- General procedural provisions
- Definitions
- Receptacles for household waste
- Receptacles for commercial and industrial waste
- Removal of controlled waste on land
- Statutory Nuisances (including the Noise Act 1996)
- Seizure of equipment used to make noise unlawfully
- Noise from certain premises at night
- Audible alarm notification areas
- Definitions
- Litter offences
- Litter abatement orders
- Litter abatement notices
- Litter clearing notices (LCN's)
- Street litter control notices
- Abandoned trolleys
- Seizure of stray dogs
- Dog control orders
- Burning of crop residues
- The identification and remediation of contaminated land
Waste on Land
Statutory Nuisances
Litter
Dogs
Crop residues
Contaminated land
POLLUTION PREVENTION AND CONTROL ACT 1999 WITH THE POLLUTION PREVENTION AND CONTROL (ENGLAND AND WALES) REGULATIONS 2000
- Integrated pollution and prevention and control (IPPC)
- General procedural provisions
- Permitting of activities by LA's
- Handling of commercially confidential information by LA's
- Transfer of permits
- Variations of permit conditions
- Surrender of permits
- Enforcement and suspension notices
- LA powers to prevent or remedy pollution
- Revocation of permits by LA
- Applications to LA to exclude commercially confidential information from public register
ENVIRONMENT ACT 1995
- General procedural provisions
- LA reviews of air quality
- Air Quality Management Areas (AQMA's)
CLEAN AIR ACT 1993
- General procedural provisions
- Definitions
- Prohibition of dark smoke etc from industrial and trade premises (other than chimneys)
- Control of grit and dust from furnaces
- Height of chimneys servicing furnaces
- Height of chimneys not servicing furnaces
- Smoke control areas
- Obtaining information about atmospheric pollution
Smoke and Grit Etc
Chimney heights
Smoke control
Atmospheric pollution
CONTROL OF POLLUTION ACT 1974 (NOISE CONTROL PROVISIONS)
- General procedural provisions
- Definitions
- Noise from construction sites
- Noise abatement zones : designation by LA's
- Noise abatement zones : measurement and registration of noise levels and consent to exceed them
- Noise abatement zones : noise level determinations for new buildings
- Noise abatement zones : noise reduction notices
- Consents for the use of loudspeakers in streets
HEALTH AND SAFETY AT WORK ACT 1974 (WITH ASSOCIATED REGULATIONS)
- General procedural provisions
- Definitions
- Improvement and prohibition notices
- Seizure of dangerous articles or substances
- Reporting of injuries, diseases and dangerous occurrences
- Notification of cooling towers and evaporative condensers
FOOD CONTROL AND HYGIENE LEGISLATION
- Introduction
- Legal structure
- Food authorities
- Authorised officers
- Definitions
- General procedural provisions
- Registration of food business establishments
- Approval of product specific establishments
- Hygiene Improvement Notices
- Hygiene Prohibition Notices
- Hygiene emergency prohibition notices
- Remedial action notices and detention notices
- Detention and seizure of food
- Sampling of food
- Closure notices on mollusc harvesting areas
Registration and approval of food business establishments
Enforcement actions under the Food Hygiene (England) Regulations 2006
Enforcement procedures under the Food Safety Act 1990 and Food Hygiene Regs 2006
Enforcement procedures under EC regulations
LICENSING
- Introductory note
- Animal boarding establishments
- Dangerous wilds animals
- Dog breeding establishments
- Pet shops
- Riding establishments
- Licensing act 2003
- Personal licences
- Premises licences
- Club premises certificates
- Permitted temporary activities
- Closure of licences premises
- Skin piercing and other special treatments
- Street trading
- Licensing of caravan sites (park homes)
- Scrap metal dealers
Animal welfare licences
Alcohol and entertainment licences
Other licences
HOUSING ACTS
- Structure of the law dealing with housing standards and their enforcement
- General procedural provisions
- Housing Standards - the housing health and safety rating system (HHSRS)
- Improvement notices
- Prohibition notices
- Hazard awareness notices
- Notices of emergency remedial action
- Emergency prohibition notices
- Demolition orders
- Clearance areas
- Definitions
- HMO declarations
- Licensing of HMO's
- Designation of areas for additional licensing of HMO's
- Interim management orders
- Final management orders
- Overcrowding notices for HMO's
- Renewal areas
- selective licensing of residential accommodation
- Overcrowding
Enforcement
Houses in multiple occupation
Miscellaneous housing procedures
MISCELLANEOUS
- Introductory note
- Removal of persons in need of care
- LA role in controls over radioactive substances
- Control of rats and mice
- Sanitary conveniences at places of entertainment
- Protection of buildings
- Abandoned vehicles
- Removal and disposal of abandoned refuse
- Controls over trading on Sundays at large shops
- Removal of unauthorized campers
- Anti social behaviours orders
Biography
Bill Bassett authored the first seven editions of Environmental Health Procedures, the first of which appeared in 1983. His dedication to navigating and clarifying the relevant regulations and laws in this book has aided countless environmental health practitioners in the UK and beyond. Bill passed the baton to Tim Deveaux in 2013, but remained on hand to help both the new author and the publisher throughout. The ninth edition continues in the spirit of Bill’s classic book, and is the second to be named after him. Bill sadly died in 2017 and his legacy remains a testament to a leading, visionary and dedicated environmental health practitioner.
Tim Deveaux is an independent environmental health practitioner with 36 years of public sector experience in a wide range of areas in environmental health and sustainability. His experience includes housing, drainage, food safety, health and safety, air pollution and noise, infectious disease control, developing and implementing strategies to change behaviour, and protecting the environment and human health, particularly in planning for, and implementing, climate change and sustainability solutions.
"Bassett’s Environmental Health Procedures provides practical guidance on implementing the wide and diverse range of legislation in the field of Environmental Health. I would thoroughly recommend it to all Environmental Health Practitioners." Alan Higgins, independent Environmental and Waste Consultant