Recent events

Record of London meetings from 2003

View here a record of all the London meetings from 2003-2010 (Adobe Acrobat)

London meeting on the Environment Court

Speakers at the May 2010 London meeting discussed the issue of the Environment Court at an international, European and national level. Stephen Hockman QC asked whether we need an International Court to ensure that international obligations are correctly interpreted and met? He predicted that the 20 year anniversary of the Rio Summit would be a good time to discuss the proposal. Prof Richard Macrory assessed the likelihood of having an Environmental Tribunal at the UK level after years of debate about the issue. He saw it as most likely necessary to deal with appeals from the new regulatory regime and statutory appeals under the environmental regulations. Carol Hatton of WWF looked at the mixed results at a European level, which provides an accessible costs regime but makes it very hard for cases to be brought forward.
You can views the presentations by Carol Hatton and Richard Macrory below. Stephen Hockman's paper will appear in the July 2010 e-law. A podcast of the event will appear here shortly.

Carol Hatton's presentation (Adobe Acrobat)

Richard Macrory's presentation (Adobe Acrobat)

London meeting on Nuclear

The opportunities and challenges for nuclear power generation were discussed at this well attended London meeting. Speakers discussed the current nuclear power stations and what lay ahead for nuclear generation in the UK, given the recent Government consultation naming preferred sites.
Prof Paul Leonard of Corporate Risk Associates Ltd discussed the development of the UK power station programme, locations of existing sites, the challenges of commissioning, operation and decommissioning, public awareness and concerns as well as radiological safety assessments. Scott Lyness of Landmark Chambers scrutinised the government consultation on the National Policy Statement for Nuclear Generation. Peter Frost, of Frazer Nash, took an engineer's tour through the challenges ahead.
The seminar was chaired by Maria Cull, of Citrus Partners LLP, environmental consultants.

We have made a podcast of the entire lecture, available for you to listen to straight away by clicking on our podcast player:

The presentations are below - some of the files are quite big and may take a while to download.

Scott Lyness paper on nuclear Feb 10th 2010 (Adobe Acrobat)

Paul Leonard on nuclear Feb 10th 2010 (Adobe Acrobat)

London meeting on Sustainable Buildings

Buildings account for 40% of total energy consumption in the EU. Proposals contained in draft European legislation may soon impose an array of obligations on Member States to introduce energy efficient measures in buildings, including what are called net-zero-energy buildings. These measures will reduce energy consumption, create up to 450,000 jobs in the EU and offer a £24 billion a year energy-cost saving. The meeting on November 24th 2009 was chaired by Begonia Filgueira. The speakers were: Professor Tadj Oreszczyn, Peter Martin of Carbon Sense and Malcolm Dowden, solicitor and Environmental Law consultant. The powerpoints from the meeting are below and a DVD of the evening is available to loan from the UKELA office on request (use the feedback form).

We have made a podcast of the entire lecture, available for you to listen to straight away by clicking on our podcast player:

Professor Tadj Oreszczyn's presentation (MS PowerPoint)

Malcolm Dowden's presentation (MS PowerPoint)

London meeting: Renewables

Denton Wilde Sapte kindly hosted the September London meeting which looked at renewables - particularly tidal and wind power. The speakers were Stephen Morgan of Landmark Chambers who considered the renewable energy options having regard to the legal and policy framework. Dr Tim Norman talked about The Crown Estate's Offshore Wind Programme and Ian Watson of Frazer Nash discussed emerging technologies, with a focus on tidal energy. Their talks can be viewed below.
The meeting was chaired by Simon Boyle of Argyll Environmental Ltd.

Stephen Morgan: renewables overview (MS PowerPoint)

Tim Norman: Crown Estate and Offshore Wind (MS PowerPoint)

Ian Watson: Tidal Energy (MS PowerPoint)

London meeting: Major Accidents to the Environment

The June 2009 London meeting considered some alarming scenarios and attempted to answer questions like: if our plant catches fire, when should it be allowed to burn down to prevent pollution? When does enforcement turn into prosecution, following an environmental accident? Will our environmental insurance cover the costs of remediation? The meeting was chaired by UKELA London meeting organiser, Begonia Filgueira of ERIC.
Speakers included Ivan Vince, of ASK consultants, who has recently co-ordinated publication of a book on major accidents (published by Elsevier); Catherine Davey and Valerie Fogleman of Stevens and Bolton, and Dr Niall Ramsden of Resource Protection International.
Thanks once again to Herbert Smith for hosting.

We have made a podcast of the entire lecture, available for you to listen to straight away by clicking on our podcast player:

London meeting: EPP Phase 2

Nearly fifty UKELA members attended an update on the implementation of the Environmental Permitting Programme (EPP) on May 21st. Peter Kellett, of the Environment Agency and UKELA’s chair, explained his work on integrating and simplifying the permitting schemes across various sectors. The aim was to make regulation more efficient and cheaper for businesses in the long run. Gill Weeks Environmental and Regulatory Affairs Director for Veolia Environmental Services (UK) plc talked about the effects of the changes on the waste industry. Some of the changes had been difficult to implement and the costs had risen initially, but it was early days and time was needed for the new system to bed in. Angus Evers, head of the Environment Group at SJ Berwin LLP, and convenor of UKELA’s Waste Working Party, addressed some of the issues raised by the working party during consultations on the new EPP.
The meeting was chaired by Simon Boyle, of Argyll Environmental, and kindly hosted by Herbert Smith. UKELA’s thanks go to Angela Pallett and the Herbert Smith team for their excellent organisation.

We have made a podcast of the entire lecture, available for you to download here (warning: very large file), or simply listen to straight away by clicking on our podcast player:

Young UKELA Spring Reception 2009

Speakers and organisers of the spring reception

A spring reception was held at DLA Piper in London on April 27th. Speakers were: Carol Hatton of WWF, on Access to Justice, Stephens Tromans, of 39 Essex Street with a hot cases update, and Steve Quartermain, Chief Planner at the Department of Communities and Local Government who spoke on planning reform. There was an opportunity for drinks afterwards. Gabrielle Tipple of DLA Piper hosted the event assisted by Chris Badger, of 23 Essex Street.

Ensuring access to environmental justice in England and Wales report (Adobe Acrobat)

Carol Hatton presentation Access to Justice event (MS PowerPoint)

Richard Macrory presentation Access to Justice event (Adobe Acrobat)