Control of Pollution Act 1974

51 Notice to abstain from certain agricultural practices

(1) If a water authority is of opinion that any relevant waters—

(a) have been or are likely to be polluted in consequence of such an act or omission as is first mentioned in section 31(2)(c) of this Act which has occurred at a place in the area of the authority; or

(b) are likely to be polluted if such an act or omission occurs at such a place,

the authority may, by an application in writing made to the Secretary of State which specifies the kind of act or omission in question and the reasons for the opinion, request the Secretary of State to serve on the occupier of the place a notice requesting the occupier to prevent acts or omissions of that kind at the place.

(2) It shall be the duty of an authority which makes an application in pursuance of the preceding subsection to serve a copy of the application on the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food and the occupier of the place to which the application relates and to serve on the said occupier a statement informing him that he may, within the period of twenty-eight days beginning with the date on which the statement is served on him, make representations in writing to the Secretary of State about the application.

In the application of this subsection to Scotland the reference to the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food shall be omitted.

(3) Where an application is made to the Secretary of State in pursuance of this section it shall be his duty, after considering any representations about the application which are made to him in pursuance of the preceding subsection—

(a) to serve on the occupier of the place in question the notice requested by the application or a notice containing a request to the occupier which the Secretary of State considers is less restrictive than the request specified in the application or a notice stating that he has rejected the application; and

(b) to serve on the authority in question a copy of the notice which the Secretary of State has served in pursuance of the preceding paragraph.

(4) It shall be the duty of a water authority which is required by virtue of section 41(1)(e) of this Act to maintain a register containing particulars of notices of which copies have been served on the authority in pursuance of the preceding subsection to enter in the register, forthwith after the service on the authority of each such copy other than a copy of a notice of rejection of an application, particulars of the notice and a statement of the date on which it was served on the authority.

(5) If the Secretary of State considers that a notice served in pursuance of subsection (3) of this section on the occupier of a place should be cancelled he may, after giving notice of his proposal to do so to the water authority on whose application the other notice was served and considering any representations made to him by the authority about the proposal, serve on the occupier of the place a further notice cancelling the other notice at a time specified in the further notice; and where the Secretary of State serves a notice in pursuance of this subsection—

(a) it shall be his duty to serve a copy of it on the authority aforesaid; and

(b) it shall be the duty of the authority to enter in the said register a statement that the other notice was or is to be cancelled at the time specified as aforesaid.