The Infrastructure Planning (Environmental Impact Assessment) Regulations 2009

Accepted application - effect of environmental statement being inadequate

17.—(1) Where an Examining authority or the Secretary of State is examining an application for an order granting development consent; and paragraph (2) applies, the Examining authority or the Secretary of State must—

(a) issue a written statement giving clearly and precisely the full reasons for its conclusion;

(b) send a copy of that written statement to the applicant; and

(c) suspend consideration of the application until the applicant has provided further information.

the Examining authority or the Secretary of State must suspend consideration of the application until the requirements of paragraph (3) are satisfied.

(2) This paragraph applies if—

(a) the applicant has submitted a statement that the applicant refers to as an environmental statement; and

(b) the Examining authority or the Secretary of State is of the view that the statement should contain further information.

(3) The requirements mentioned in paragraph (1) are that the applicant must—

(a) provide the Examining authority or the Secretary of State (as the case may be) with the further information;

(b) publish a notice (in accordance with paragraph (c)) which sets out the following information—

(i) the name and address of the applicant;

(ii) that the applicant has made an application to the Commission for an order granting development consent for EIA development;

(iii) that the Commission has accepted the application and the reference number of the application;

(iv) that examination by the Examining authority or the Secretary of State has been suspended until additional information required for the environmental statement has been provided and publicised;

(v) a summary of the main proposals, specifying the location or route of the proposed development;

(vi) that the environmental statement and the additional information are available for inspection free of charge at the places (including at least one address in the vicinity of the proposed development) and times set out in the notice;

(vii) the latest date on which those documents will be available for inspection (being a date not earlier that the date referred to in sub-paragraph (b)(x);

(viii) whether a charge will be made for copies of any of those documents and the amount of any charge;

(ix) details of how to respond to the publicity;

(x) a deadline for receipt of responses being not less than 28 days following the date on which the notice is last published.

(c) publish the notice—

(i) for at least two successive weeks in one or more local newspapers circulating in the vicinity in which the development is situated;

(ii) once in a national newspaper;

(iii) once in the London Gazette and if land in Scotland is affected, the Edinburgh Gazette; and

(iv) in the case of offshore development, once in Lloyds List and once in an appropriate fishing trade journal;

(d) display the notice at, or as close as reasonably practicable to, the site of the proposed development at a place accessible to the public;

(e) where the proposed development consists of, or includes, a linear scheme exceeding five kilometres in length, display the notice at intervals of not more than five kilometres along the whole proposed route of the works, except where this is impracticable due to the land being covered in water;

(f) serve on any person of whom the applicant has been notified under regulation 9(1)(c) a notice containing the information specified in sub-paragraph (b), except that the date specified as the latest date on which the documents will be available for inspection must not be less than 28 days later than the date on which the notice is first served;

(g) send to the consultation bodies the further information and a notice setting out the information specified in sub-paragraph (b)(i) to (v);

(h) inform those bodies—

(i) how and to whom they may make representations;

(ii) of the deadline for making representations which must be not less than 28 days later than the last date on which the additional information was sent in accordance with sub-paragraph (g); and

(i) certify to the Examining authority or the Secretary of State in the form set out in certificate 3 in Schedule 5 that the applicant has complied with the requirements of sub-paragraphs (b) to (h).

(4) If any person issues a certificate under paragraph (3)(i) which purports to certify compliance with the requirements of paragraph (3)(b) to (h), and which contains a statement which that person knows to be false or misleading in a material particular, or recklessly issues a certificate which purports to do so and which contains a statement which is false or misleading in a material particular, that person shall be guilty of an offence and liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 3 on the standard scale.