Environmental regulation has resulted in greater protection and improvements to the environment in England and Wales. Overall, the number of serious pollution incidents from sites under environmental regulation has fallen by a quarter since 2004, with most companies maintaining a good environmental record, despite the difficult economic conditions. However, more than 750 serious pollution incidents took place in England and Wales in 2009 - over 150 on regulated sites. Despite the improvements of the last decade, more needs to be done to protect the environment through working closely with businesses and communities and through regulation. As Europe's largest environmental regulator, we are constantly striving to improve the way it regulates businesses in order to ensure environmental protection and reduce the burden that regulation can have on them.
展开▼
