|
|
The Environmental Health & Licensing Division provides a public protection service, ensuring that the health and safety of those living and working in the Borough is not harmed by their surroundings or by the action of others.
The Division has responsibility for a wide range of duties and functions including :
Listed below is a brief guide to Environmental Health & Licensing information that is available and how you can access it.
Accessing Public Registers
We hold a number of public registers which can be viewed during normal office hours (8.45 to 5.00 Monday to Friday) by visiting the Civic Centre. It is preferable if an appointment is made before visiting to view a particular register so that we can ensure that the register you want is ready and waiting for you. You may take copy out any part of a register or you can request a photocopy of a particular part of the register although there will be a charge for photocopying.
We are unable to extract information from a public register to match the location of a particular location nor are we able to extract information on behalf of people making enquiries by telephone or by post.
Air Quality
The Council has carried out |air quality monitoring since 1993 for a variety of pollutants. The results will give a good indicator of typical values across the Borough but are unlikely to give detailed information for a particular property.
Contaminated Land
This Council keeps a public register of |contaminated land as required under the Environmental Protection Act 1990. Such a register would include copies of any remediation notices served. There are currently no entries in this register for any premises within the Elmbridge area.
This Council does not keep a register of land used for a purpose that might predispose it to contamination or any records regarding previous uses of sites.
However, informal information regarding previous uses of individual sites might be available from the Town Planning Division from such sources as land use surveys or the history of planning applications relating to the site. For more information contact the |Town Planning Division.
If you are concerned about the possible condition of a piece of land that you are considering purchasing, you are advised to make your own particular enquiries from the vendor of the land.
Environmental Health & Licensing Service Requests
All requests for services by this Division, e.g. problems of |noise nuisance or |smoke nuisance leakages, spillages, etc. are made on a confidential basis and details of such matters cannot be divulged.
Where this resulted in statutory action by this Division then this will have been registered, where appropriate, on the Land Charges register maintained by the Council.
We are not able to search our records for details of whether any prosecutions have been initiated in the past in respect of particular premises nor are we able to provide any information regarding "pollution incidents" on or near a particular plot of land.
|Environmental Information Regulations
On 1st January 2005 revised Environmental Information Regulations (EIR) took effect.
Where an |Environmental Information Regulations Request Form is received it will be dealt with under the Environmental Information Regulations and not Freedom of Information (FOI). Since 1992 it has been the right of the public to have access to environmental information under these regulations. The regulations have, however, been revised to take into account the Aarhus Convention and the EU Directive on Public Access to Environmental Information.
These regulations take Freedom of Information into account and share many common elements.
Interpreting Information
Purchasers often have an environmental survey of a house or plot of land made before completing its purchase and these often reveal information. However unless this is properly interpreted by an environmental consultant its importance or relevance to the land in question may not be clear. A pollution incident or registration of nearby premuises might be of little relevance but might be misinterpreted as being as a major problem.
We advise that such reports should be professionally interpreted but this is not a service which the Council can provide.
|Part I Environmental Protection Act 1990
The Council and the Environment Agency are responsible for authorising some of the more polluting industries. Detailed information regarding these premises may be obtained by viewing the public register held by the Council.
A list of names, addresses and locations of all the authorised premises within the Borough can be sent free of charge on request by contacting to the |Environmental Health & Licensing Division.
Private Water Supplies
This authority maintains a public register of private water supplies in the Borough.
Radioactive Substances Act 1960
Public registers of information under this Act are kept by the Environment Agency. Copies of such entries are sent by them to this Council in respect of premises within the Borough and form a public register.
Radon
Radon is a naturally occurring radioactive gas that in some areas of the country can seep into houses. In these areas special precautions are taken to make sure that the gas does not build up in voids under house or buildings. Areas where 1% or more of homes have levels of radon exceeding 200 becquerels per cubic metere of air are regarded as "Affected Areas".
Elmbridge is not such an area and a survey conducted in 1989 in the Borough showed an average concentration of 25 Bq/m-3.
Waste Disposal Sites
This Council is unable to search for historic records about waste disposal sites that may have existed within the Borough except information that may be held by the |Town Planning Division relating to planning applications or decisions for a particular site.
We do not currently maintain any information regarding the locations of closed or licensed landfill sites and enquiries regarding such sites should be directed to the Environment Agency as they are responsible for licensing current sites and will have any historic information about closed sites.
Contact: Environment Agency, Swift House, Frimley Business Park, Camberley, Surrey GU16 5SQ Tel: 01276-454300.
To find out more contact the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health and ask for a copy of "Making the difference: a guide to careers in environmental health" or visit the |CIEH careers webpage.