Department of the Environment, Food and Regional Affairs - Essay Example

Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) Defra is the government agency working in the United Kingdom, England Scotland Wales and Northern Ireland dealing with issues of environmental importance and enforcement of quality standards as established by the government. The agency deals with matters such as, Animal health and welfare, Climate change, Environmental protection, Exports and trade, Farming, marine and fisheries, Food and drink, Horticulture, Plants and Seeds, Research and analysis, Rural Affairs, Sustainable development, Wildlife and Countryside. This paper will attempt to review work done by Defra in Environmental Protection. Air Quality Defra works in control and management of air quality across the United Kingdom. On 17 July 2007 the UK Government and local administrations published the latest Air Quality Strategy for England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. This made it possible to move forward on air quality standards and the objectives that need to be achieved, including new policy framework for tracking fine particles and identifying new national policy measure for air quality in the UK and improved health for its citizens. Recently in August 2008 a Consultation on the UK report regarding plans for the country to comply with the European Union(EU) standards. Plans were submitted for meeting the EU ambient air quality limit values. The Air Quality Framework directive(1996/62/EC), where limit values plus a margin tolerance are exceeded, member states must produce plans and programs to show compliance within a required timescale, no later than two years after the end of the end of the year that the exceeded values were observed. The consultation document concerned exceeded values for nitrogen dioxide in certain areas of the UK for the calendar year of 2006. Local Air Quality Management(LAQM) Local authorities have statutory duties for local air quality management(LAQM) under the environment act of 1995. They are required to carry out review and assessments of air quality according to the standards and objectives in the national Air Quality Strategy. Regulations for monitoring air quality have been established with, The Air Quality Standards Resolution 2007 No.64, The Air Quality Limit Values (Amendment) Regulations 2004-2000. Pollutants monitored and regulated include, Benzene,1,3-Butadiene, Carbon Monoxide, Lead, Nitrogen Dioxide, PM10, Sulphur Dioxide. Besides local regulating bodies many consulting groups providing guidance on the protection of Air Quality, these include the Air Quality Expert Group, Air Quality Forum, Expert Panel on Air Quality Standards and interdepartmental Group on Costs and Benefits. Business and the Environment Recently much interest has been taken in making private business concerns conscious of their responsibility to concerns of the environment. In 2002 the Johannesburg World Summit on Sustainable Development dealing with matters of consumption and production and corporate responsibility. In March 2005 the UK government launched the UK Sustainable Development Strategy, dealing with the problems of of extraction of raw materials all the way to the engagement of consumers about the products and services they buy and eventually discard. With the production of more environmental friendly products increased and increased awareness by the consumer these programs are attempting to secure a more sustainable production that saves environmental resources. Government and local agencies have become directly involved in providing information and advice as how business can provide business sectors to improve environmental performance. Chemicals, Hazardous Wastes Defra is integrally involved in the tracking and proper disposal of Chemicals and Hazardous wastes. Chemicals are not substances just found in laboratories, they found in our daily lives in the food we eat, the water we drink, the clothes we wear and the air we breathe. The positive effect of the lifestyle of modern man made by the chemical industries is undisputable, and their economic benefits are astounding. However its clear that improper exposure to many chemicals substances is a threat to the health of individuals and the environment. The Stockholm Convention entered into force in May of 2004. The subject was the control of persistent Organic Pollutans(POPs). POPs are a group of chemicals that persist in the environment, may bioaccumulate in food and human tissues and are toxic. The 12 POP listed in the convention fall into three broad categories: Pesticides Aldrin Chlordane Diedrin Endrin Hexachlorobenzene(HCB) Heptachlor Mirex Toxaphene DDT Industrial Chemicals Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs) And unintentionally produced by products of combustion and some industrial and non-industrial processes( dioxins, furans, HCB and PCBs). The two remaining POPs (known as dioxins)have never been produced intentionally but are by-products of combustion and chemical production. In the UK, dioxins have been recognized as chemicals requiring attention for many years. Overall emmisions have been reduced by 70% between 1990 and 2005. The major route of dioxin exposure is through the food chain. Standards agencies in the UK monitor the food supply and animal feeds for dioxin-like PCBs to further reduce human exposure. Other chemicals monitored by Defra include risk assessment for heavy metals and other inorganic compunds, lead in old paint, and environmental sampling after chemical accidents. Advisory groups working with Defra on matters concerning Chemicals include the UK Chemicals Stakeholders Forum, Advisory Committee on Hazardous Substances and the UK Dioxins Strategy Group. Climate Change and Energy Defra considers climate change the greatest environmental challenge facing the world today. Rising global temperatures can have extreme affects on weather patterns in the uk and other vulnerable areas. The prospect of the sea levels rising wiping out coastlines worldwide, and putting island nations underwater troubles world leaders and the population of the planet we live on. The UK Government formed the New Department of Energy and Climate Change. What is climate change? The greenhouse effect, greenhouse gases, effects of climate change doing globally and to the UK. The Earth has warmed by 0.74 degrees Celsius over the last hundred years. 0.4 degrees of this warming has occurred since the 1970s. The Intergovernmental panel on Climate Change(IPCC) leaves no doubt that humans are the primary factor driving global warming. The main influence on global climate is emissions of the greenhouse gases-carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide. The accumulation of these gases in the atmosphere strengthens the greenhouse affect. Today 7 billion tons of carbon dioxide is emitted globally each year through fossil fuel use. It is predicted global temperature will rise from 1.8 to 6.4 degrees Celsius above 1990 levels. This will result in a rise in global sea-levels from between 20 and 60cm, continued melting of ice caps, glaciers and sea ice, changes in rainfall patterns and intensification of tropical cyclones. The Greenhouse Effect The gases contributing to what we now tern The Greenhouse effect are Carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, hydroflurocarbons, perflurocarbons, and sulphur hexafluoride. These are the gases covered by the Kyoto protocol. Each greenhouse gas has a different capacity to cause global warming, depending on radiative properties, its molecular weight, and its lifetime in the atmosphere, and the gas is given a global warming potential (GWP). The GWP is defined as the warming influence over a set time period of a gas relative to that of carbon dioxide. A 100-year time horizon is used in the Kyoto Protocal. When the warming effect of current greenhouse gas emmisions over the next 100 years is calculated, the graph shows that carbon dioxide will be responsible for about two thirds of the global warming. Land Usage Land usage is of great concern, and England has a history of chemical contamination of land. Sometimes the contaminants may exist naturally, but it is often the case the contamination is a result of industrial or human domestic uses. In most cases the contamination is sufficiently low that humans are at no significant risk but cases occur when contaminants are at high enough levels and land is considered "contaminated". The governments long-term aim is to identify these contaminated lands and dealt with. Wide range policies include, identification and prevention though policy and legislation on pollution, waste, water and chemicals. Noise Defra develop and promoted initiative to address noise and other statutory nuisance and manages research into noise. The Noise and Nuisance policy team is responsible for: 1. Developing policy on neighborhood noise 2. Developing policy on ambient noise 3. Negotiating proposals for European legislation on environmental noise and implementing legislation once it comes into force 4.Managing noise research including noise mapping Recycling and Waste In the uk approximately 100 million tons of waste are produced annually from households, commerce and industry combined. Most of it ends up in the landfill, where biodegradable waste generates methane, a greenhouse gas. Defra is attempting to educate individuals and industry to produce less waste and optimize recycling and re-use. One example is the National Industrial Symbiosis Program making marriages between industrial factories to recycle use each others wastes in a productive manner. 100,00 tons of waste was diverted from the landfill. 300 new jobs were created, and 600,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions is hoped to be reduced. Foor every ton of household waste produced commercial, industrial and construction businesses produce another 6 tons. Improve waste management and new regulations covering hazardous materials are coming into enforcement daily. These will ensure businesses will no longer be able to discard their waste without regulatory agencies as Defra watching them. Water Issues The Environment agency is responsible for the water quality in the UK. Audits and inspections of the water companies are made regularly. Sewage treatment is a great concern to the environment and protecting public health. The UK signed to a treaty forbidding the dumping of sewage sludge into open seas and this was implemented by 1998. Much progress has been made in the use of recycled effluents from sewage treatment plants for use in agriculture and sludge is now being used as fertilizers. Defra is actively working to provide for public health and protect the environment in numerous categories not touched on in this paper. Hopefully it work will make the United Kingdom and the world a healthier and happy place to live for the decades to come. Read More