Wednesday, February 20, 2019
Why Brexit is bad for our environment
The BBC report on warnings by nature charities that Wales risks losing 80% of the laws that protect its environment after Brexit with no plans in place yet to replace them. They say that Wildlife, habitats, air and water quality could all be affected:
With less than 40 days to go until the UK is set to leave the EU, WWF Cymru's director Anne Meikle warned "the rug will be pulled out from our existing environmental protections".
In her letter to the government she writes that "without these principles and governance structures in place, decisions will be significantly less robust and potentially indefensible".
She said legislation would risk being inoperable and people would lose the right and mechanism to challenge government where they failed to apply environmental laws effectively.
Currently Wales abides by hundreds of regulations and standards which apply across the EU to protect nature and guard against pollution.
The UK and Scottish governments have already announced consultations on plans to replace these laws after Brexit.
But in Wales, where control over environmental policies is devolved to the Welsh Government, ministers are yet to make an announcement.
This is not just about transferring EU rules into Welsh law. Currently members of the public can complain to the EU Commission free of charge, who can decide to investigate on their behalf. The BBC say that the most recent example is a complaint by river groups over the Welsh Government's handling of agricultural pollution in rivers. How people get redress for breaches of the law and who investigates needs to be considered by the Welsh Government as well:
Over the years, rulings from Brussels have also forced action over emissions of toxic gases at Aberthaw coal-fired power station in the Vale of Glamorgan and the creation of a marine protection zone off west Wales to help the threatened harbour porpoise.
In England, Environment Secretary Michael Gove announced proposals for a new independent body - known as the Office for Environmental Protection.
But in a letter to the assembly's environment committee this week, Ms Griffiths said she felt the model set out by the UK government was not a "workable approach for Wales" and promised a consultation later in February.
The Welsh Government really need to step up to the plate on this. It is just seven weeks until we leave the EU and they haven't even consulted on options. We cannot afford to allow our environment to be a victim of Brexit.
With less than 40 days to go until the UK is set to leave the EU, WWF Cymru's director Anne Meikle warned "the rug will be pulled out from our existing environmental protections".
In her letter to the government she writes that "without these principles and governance structures in place, decisions will be significantly less robust and potentially indefensible".
She said legislation would risk being inoperable and people would lose the right and mechanism to challenge government where they failed to apply environmental laws effectively.
Currently Wales abides by hundreds of regulations and standards which apply across the EU to protect nature and guard against pollution.
The UK and Scottish governments have already announced consultations on plans to replace these laws after Brexit.
But in Wales, where control over environmental policies is devolved to the Welsh Government, ministers are yet to make an announcement.
This is not just about transferring EU rules into Welsh law. Currently members of the public can complain to the EU Commission free of charge, who can decide to investigate on their behalf. The BBC say that the most recent example is a complaint by river groups over the Welsh Government's handling of agricultural pollution in rivers. How people get redress for breaches of the law and who investigates needs to be considered by the Welsh Government as well:
Over the years, rulings from Brussels have also forced action over emissions of toxic gases at Aberthaw coal-fired power station in the Vale of Glamorgan and the creation of a marine protection zone off west Wales to help the threatened harbour porpoise.
In England, Environment Secretary Michael Gove announced proposals for a new independent body - known as the Office for Environmental Protection.
But in a letter to the assembly's environment committee this week, Ms Griffiths said she felt the model set out by the UK government was not a "workable approach for Wales" and promised a consultation later in February.
The Welsh Government really need to step up to the plate on this. It is just seven weeks until we leave the EU and they haven't even consulted on options. We cannot afford to allow our environment to be a victim of Brexit.
