ABSTRACT

This chapter describes at some length the impact which European Community policies have had on the British approach to environmental protection. In order to appreciate the impact that the European Community has had it is necessary to look first at British policy in this area and how it has evolved in response to British concerns and traditions. The first major legislation was enacted in 1848 in response to public health problems caused by water pollution, notably an outbreak of cholera. The development of legislation on air pollution followed a similar timescale, and not dissimilar principles. The regulation of waste disposal also had its beginnings in the last century, although the first truly preventive legislation was the Town and Country Planning Act of 1947. Much of continental Europe has come more recently to tackling issues of pollution control. The UK has resisted for many years attempts from Europe to overturn our flexible, quality objective-based approach.