The Environment Agency (EA) has announced confiscation orders totalling £74,751.16 that have been imposed on five individuals convicted of waste crimes at an illegal site in Long Bennington, Lincolnshire. Issued at Nottingham Crown Court on 12 September 2025, the confiscation orders follow earlier proceedings in 2024, which resulted in the conviction of 12 individuals and custodial sentences for seven. The EA reports that the total Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (POCA 2002) recoveries in this case now amounts to £112,338.29, with additional hearings pending against the main operators of the illegal site. The confiscated funds will be directed towards enhancing the EA's waste crime enforcement capabilities.

The Environment Agency (EA) has announced a package of new surveillance and investigative measures aimed at tackling waste crime. The measures include the deployment of a 33-strong drone team to track illegal waste sites from the air. Some drones are being upgraded to carry laser mapping capability and will soon be equipped with Light Detection and Ranging (LIDAR) technology, which emits laser pulses to generate detailed maps of sites where waste has been deposited. This mapping capability is intended to strengthen evidence gathering in support of enforcement action and court proceedings. The EA notes that since July 2025, its drones have recorded 272 hours of flight time, reflecting an increased operational focus on waste crime.

The Environment Agency (EA) has announced that it won a case against the South West Water's abuse of process application at Plymouth magistrates' Court on 7 March 2025. The water company sought to dismiss 12 charges relating to unauthorised sewage discharges at two Cornwall pumping stations between 2016-2021. District Judge Matson rejected South West Water's arguments that the EA had acted inconsistently in its data treatment and environmental monitoring requirements.

The Environment Agency (EA) has announced the launch of the Rural Flood Resilience Partnership, aimed at supporting rural flood and coastal erosion resilience and helping farmers and communities in adapting to climate change. The Partnership comprises the EA, Action with Communities in Rural England, the Association of Drainage Authorities, Country Land and Business Association, the National Farmers Union, and Natural England. The Partnership has also published its 2024-26 Work Plan, setting out 21 actions supporting seven strategic outcomes. The Work Plan focuses on developing the evidence base behind decision-making to increase resilience, ensuring communities, farmers, and landowners have access to quality advice and support, and engaging rural communities in flood resilience, among other areas.

The Environment Agency (EA) has secured confiscation orders totalling £50,609.61 against three individuals for operating an illegal waste site in Skegness, Lincolnshire. The orders were issued under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 following a case at Leeds Crown Court on 13 June 2025. Thomas Todd and Jamie Todd were ordered to pay £30,144.74 and £19,336.87 respectively within six weeks and three months, or serve eight and six months in custody. Michael Todd was ordered to pay £1,128 within three months or serve six weeks. The offences, committed between June 2015 and April 2017, involved operating without a fire prevention plan and continuing during a permit suspension. In May 2023, Thomas and Jamie Todd were sentenced to eight months in custody, and Michael Todd received a 12-month community order with 15 rehabilitation activity requirement days and 100 hours of unpaid work. A fourth individual, Bryan Walker, received a 12-month community order with 10 rehabilitation activity requirement days. The individauals were disqualified from acting as company directors for five years.

The Environment Agency (EA) has announced a consultation on the development of new standard rules that would allow operators of existing installations to apply for a bespoke permit variation to permitted activities. The permit variation would allow them, for a limited period, to conduct research and development activities on the introduction or improvement of products or processes under the permit. The consultation closes on 30 October 2024.

The Environment Agency (EA) reports it has secured a proceeds of crime judgment against two Northampton men who operated an illegal waste tyre site in Daventry. Nimesh Patel and Andrew Eyre were ordered to pay £175,013 and £138,368 respectively, with surcharges, within three months or face prison sentences of three and two years respectively. The site, Synergy Tyres (Midland) Ltd, operated without an environmental permit and exceeded legal tyre storage limits in 52 out of 59 weeks analysed. The case follows earlier prosecutions in January 2020 when the company was fined £11,250 for similar offences.

The Environment Agency (EA), alongside with the Natural Resources Wales (NRW) and the Northern Ireland Environment Agency (NIEA), has concluded a consultation on updated guidance for regulating near-surface and geological disposal facilities for solid radioactive waste. The consultation, which ran from 12 November 2024 to 28 February 2025, invited stakeholders to comment on the draft Guidance on requirements for authorisation (GRA) for England, Wales and Northern Ireland and the Staged Regulation Guidance for England, with a separate Scottish consultation addressing near-surface disposal only. The updated guidance replaces the 2009 GRAs and 2012 supplements, providing concise, accessible requirements for environmental permitting, aligning with current UK government policy, international standards and regulatory experience, and clarifying the expectations for operators throughout the development, operation and closure of disposal facilities. A total of 43 responses were received from industry, public bodies and community stakeholders, all published with personal information removed, and these will inform amendments to the guidance, which is expected to be published in 2026 alongside a summary of consultation outcomes. The guidance supports the safe, secure and environmentally protective disposal of solid radioactive waste and reflects the agencies’ commitment to transparency, public engagement and consistent regulation across the UK.

The Environment Agency (EA) has announced that Mineral Processing Ltd’s environmental permit for its South Elmsall site has been revoked following the Planning Inspectorate’s dismissal of the company's appeal on 2 March 2026. The Planning Inspectorate determined that revocation was both reasonable and necessary to safeguard the environment and human health from actual pollution and ongoing risks. As a result, the company must immediately cease all activities authorised by the permit and remove all waste from the regulated facility by 31 August 2029, transferring it either to an appropriately permitted facility or to an exempt waste operation.

The Environment Agency (EA) has updated the final outcome and response documents for its consultation on waste crime and hourly rate charges, confirming that revised waste exemptions and time and materials charges will be implemented from 1 July 2025, while the waste fee for intervention will be introduced from May 2026. The updated documents provide detailed summaries of stakeholder feedback and the regulator’s responses on waste exemptions, time and materials charges, medium combustion plant charges, the waste fee for intervention, and the proposed waste crime levy, alongside annexes containing a detailed analysis of consultation responses and a list of participants.

The Environment Agency (EA) has confirmed that financial penalties of over £1.7m were issued to companies across Yorkshire in 2023 as a result of environmental offences. The total Enforcement Undertakings (EUs) amounted to £1,718,128.19. This money will be used to benefit a range of environmental charities including Yorkshire Wildlife Trust, the Aire Rivers Trust and Yorkshire Dales Rivers Trust. EUs are made voluntarily by companies and individuals in an effort to make amends for their offences. The number of EUs agreed by the EA is increasing, with nine EUs agreed in Yorkshire in 2023 compared to only four in 2022.

The Environment Agency (EA) has launched a consultation on proposed amendments to standard rules permits to incorporate new decarbonisation readiness (DR) requirements. The proposed changes would add new conditions to specific standard rules to reflect requirements taking effect from 28 February 2026 under Schedule 25C to the Environmental Permitting (England and Wales) Regulations 2016, SI  2016/1154. These include a requirement for operators applying for environmental permits to submit a DR report for certain new or substantially refurbished electricity generators. The EA also proposes adding new conditions to existing anaerobic digestion standard rules to permit carbon capture, upgrading and temporary storage for utilisation, where operators can meet the required conditions. In addition, the EA proposes to withdraw standard rules SR2009 No 4, which cover the combustion of biogas in engines at sewage treatment works, as it is no longer required. The consultation closes on 18 December 2025.