Guidance and regulation

How to meet the general binding rules if your septic tank or small sewage treatment plant releases (discharges) waste water to the ground.

• From: Environment Agency
• Updated: 2 October 2023

When you need an environmental permit to discharge liquid effluent or waste water to surface water or the ground, and how to apply.

• From: Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs and 1 others
• Updated: 21 February 2024

How to meet the general binding rules if your septic tank or small sewage discharge treatment plant releases (discharges) waste water to a surface water.

• From: Environment Agency
• Updated: 2 October 2023

How to change details of your environmental permit, transfer it to somebody else or cancel it.

• From: Environment Agency
• Updated: 25 August 2023

Find out where SPZs are, what defines the different zones and why the Environment Agency must protect groundwater from pollution.

• From: Environment Agency
• Updated: 1 August 2019

General binding rules for small sewage discharges from septic tanks or sewage treatment plants in England.

• From: Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs and 1 others
• Updated: 2 October 2023

Use this guide to understand when your waste water discharge is classed as domestic sewage.

• From: Environment Agency
• Updated: 29 July 2021

Find out if your groundwater discharges are extremely low risk so don’t need an environmental permit or exemption.

• From: Environment Agency
• Updated: 5 August 2021

How to comply with your permit, including maintenance, record keeping and pollution reporting requirements.

• From: Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs and 1 others
• Updated: 31 December 2014

The conditions that new cemetery developments, or new extensions of a cemetery, can operate under without needing an environmental permit.

• From: Environment Agency
• Updated: 2 October 2023

Find out how the Environment Agency defines groundwater source protection zones.

• From: Environment Agency
• Updated: 1 August 2019

Formerly part of M18, technical guidance for industrial plant operators (and their contractors) who monitor effluent discharges to water and sewer.

• From: Environment Agency
• Updated: 18 May 2021

Check open environmental data and use it in your own applications.

• From: Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs and 1 others
• Updated: 31 March 2023

How to control intermittent storm discharges from combined sewer overflows and waste water treatment works, and minimise the risk of emergency sewage discharges from sewage pumping stations.

• From: Environment Agency
• Updated: 13 September 2018

Find out the compliance limits for waste water treatment works (WWTW), and how to treat and monitor discharges to meet permit conditions.

• From: Environment Agency
• Updated: 17 January 2019

The water industry is producing strategic drainage and wastewater plans to maintain, improve, and extend robust and resilient drainage and wastewater systems.

• From: Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs and 4 others
• Updated: 26 August 2022

How the Environment Agency sets and assesses discharge quality numeric limits in environmental permits.

• From: Environment Agency
• Updated: 17 January 2019

A summary of the main programmes and strategic initiatives to protect and improve the water environment.

• From: Environment Agency
• Updated: 22 December 2022

A summary of the river basin planning process the Environment Agency and others have followed in reviewing and updating the river basin management plans.

• From: Environment Agency
• Updated: 30 March 2023

Environment Agency enforcement position for wetlands that receive treated final effluent discharged from water and sewerage company wastewater treatment works.

• From: Environment Agency
• Updated: 29 November 2022