The Environment Agency has launched a new online system that allows industry to directly apply for and automatically receive registrations for activities that are under Environment Agency jurisdiction. The system has been developed by the Environment Agency’s regulatory solutions partner SciSys.
Previously, industry had to apply in writing or through the Environment Agency’s call centre - each registration taking up Environment Agency staff time to process the application.
The new online system is unique in that it uses a set of rules to assess the risk posed to the environment of the activities being applied for and can automatically grant lower risk licences without any delay or Environment Agency staff time being used.
Environment Agency Chief Executive, Paul Leinster, said: “Online registration is a major step forward in our risk-based approach to regulation, allowing the Environment Agency to target efforts where they are needed most and reducing the administrative burden on industry by providing more effective systems.”
Currently the Environment Agency processes some 35,000 low risk, low value applications every year. The new system will free up Environment Agency resources that can be deployed on assessing higher risk applications. It is easy to use – with many types of regulatory regimes available from the same system, and information that is common to the different types of registration is entered only once.
The use of a single system across multiple regulatory regimes is a unique concept that is a direct result of close working relationship and innovative culture between SciSys, the solution provider, and the Environment Agency. Further categories of registrations and permits will be added to the online tool as the system develops.
The SciSys registrations solution provides:
- A modern and improved customer experience as the customer is able to choose how to apply for licences
- A common automated process for handling submissions received from multiple sources (web, call centre and paper forms
- Automatic assessment of the potential environmental risk of an application and grants / sends for consultation as appropriate
- High data quality by linking to 3rd party systems such as Companies House
- Extensibility, such that additional legislative regimes can easily be incorporated
- Automatic maintenance of a public register, certificate / correspondence and audit trail generation.
The registrations solution developed with the help of SciSys is a cornerstone of the Environment Agency’s Integrated Regulation (IR) programme. IR has been developed as a direct response to the Government’s drive to reduce administrative burdens on industry coupled with the use of a risk based approach as embodied in the Hampton report and targets for reductions in administrative burden.
For more information visit: The Environment Agency Website
