Duties of public bodies
Section 28G of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 (as amended) states that public bodies must "take reasonable steps, consistent with the proper exercise of their functions, to further the conservation and enhancement of SSSIs".
Natural England must be consulted if a public body proposes to carry out an operation that may damage an interest feature of an SSSI, or if they are considering permitting another party to carry out an operation that may do so. These requirements apply to operations taking place within the SSSI, and to operations taking place outside the SSSI that may affect the features of interest.
What is the process for a Public Body proposing to undertake operations likely to damage a feature of interest?
Before undertaking an operation, formal notice must be given to Natural England under section 28H of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 (as amended). Public bodies will find it useful to discuss their proposals with us before giving formal notice. Contact your local Natural England office
.
We have 28 days to reply and will respond by either giving assent (with or without conditions) or by declining assent. We may also give written advice.
If we assent, the operation may commence immediately.
If we do not assent, or the public body proposes to carry out the operation contrary to the conditions, the public body must wait for the expiry of 28 days from the date of the original notice before giving us a second notice. This further notice must include the proposed start date of the operation (which cannot commence for a further 28 days) and details of how our written advice has been taken into account. During this further 28-day period, we may refer the case to the Secretary of State, but this would only happen in extreme cases.
It is a reasonable excuse to carry out operations in an emergency, as long as we are informed as soon as practicable after the operation commences.
What is the process for a Public Body proposing to permit other parties to undertake operations likely to damage a feature of interest?
A public body which has powers to grant permission for other parties to carry out operations, must give formal notice to Natural England under section 28I of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 (as amended) before granting permission. Public bodies will find it useful to discuss the permission with us before giving formal notice. Contact your local Natural England office.
We have 28 days to reply and will respond by giving advice in relation to whether the permission should be granted and what conditions (if any) should be attached to the permission.
The public body must wait for the expiry of 28 days before deciding whether to grant the permission, unless we notify the public body that it does not need to wait until then.
If the public body intends to grant the permission against our advice or to not follow our advice in relation to attaching conditions, it must give Natural England a second notice. This must give notice of the permission, and of its terms, and include a statement of how (if at all) the public body has taken account of our advice. In addition, the permission must be deferred for 21 days before operations may commence. During this 21-day period, we may refer the case to the Secretary of State, but this would only happen in extreme cases.
Further information for public bodies is given in the Defra Code of Guidance 'Sites of Special Scientific Interest: Encouraging positive partnerships'.
