Environment Act 1995

37 Incidental general functions. E+W+S

(1) Each new Agency (that is to say, in this Part, the Agency or SEPA)—

(a) may do anything which, in its opinion, is calculated to facilitate, or is conducive or incidental to, the carrying out of its functions; and

(b) without prejudice to the generality of that power, may, for the purposes of, or in connection with, the carrying out of those functions, acquire and dispose of land and other property and carry out such engineering or building operations as it considers appropriate;

and the Agency may institute criminal proceedings in England and Wales.

(2) It shall be the duty of each new Agency to provide the Secretary of State or the Minister with such advice and assistance as he may request.

(3) Subject to subsection (4) below, each new Agency may provide for any person, whether in or outside the United Kingdom, advice or assistance, including training facilities, as respects any matter in which that new Agency has skill or experience.

(4) Without prejudice to any power of either new Agency apart from subsection (3) above to provide advice or assistance of the kind mentioned in that subsection, the power conferred by that subsection shall not be exercised in a case where the person for whom the advice or assistance is provided is outside the United Kingdom, except with the consent in writing of the appropriate Minister which consent may be given subject to such conditions as the Minister giving it thinks fit.

(5) Each new Agency—

(a) shall make arrangements for the carrying out of research and related activities (whether by itself or by others) in respect of matters to which its functions relate; and

(b) may make the results of any such research or related activities available to any person in return for payment of such fee as it considers appropriate.

(6) Subsection (5) above shall not be taken as preventing a new Agency from making the results of any research available to the public free of charge whenever it considers it appropriate to do so.

(7) Each new Agency may by agreement with any person charge that person a fee in respect of work done, or services or facilities provided, as a result of a request made by him for advice or assistance, whether of a general or specific character, in connection with any matter involving or relating to environmental licences.

(8) Subsection (7) above—

(a) is without prejudice to the generality of the powers of either new Agency to make charges; but

(b) is subject to any such express provision with respect to charging by the new Agency in question as is contained in the other provisions of this Part or in any other enactment.

[F1 (8A) In subsection (8) above, “enactment” includes an enactment comprised in, or in an instrument made under, an Act of the Scottish Parliament.]

(9) In this section “engineering or building operations”, without prejudice to the generality of that expression, includes—

(a) the construction, alteration, improvement, maintenance or demolition of any building or structure or of any reservoir, watercourse, dam, weir, well, borehole or other works; and

(b) the installation, modification or removal of any machinery or apparatus.

Textual Amendments

F1 S. 37(8A) inserted (S.) (30.6.2014) by Regulatory Reform (Scotland) Act 2014 (asp 3), s. 61(2), sch. 3 para. 43(4); S.S.I. 2014/160, art. 2(1)(2)

Modifications etc. (not altering text)

C1 S. 37(2)(4) functions cease to be exercisable (with effect in accordance with art. 1(3) of the amending S.I.) by The Natural Resources Body for Wales (Consequential Provision) Order 2013 (S.I. 2013/1821), arts. 1(2), 6 (with art. 24)

Commencement Information

I1 S. 37 wholly in force at 1.4.1996; s. 37 not in force at Royal Assent see s. 125(3); s. 37(1)(2)(9) in force at 28.7.1995 by S.I. 1995/1983, art. 2; s. 37(3)-(8) in force at 1.4.1996 by S.I. 1996/186, art 3