What risks we cover: Environmental pollution (chemical, biological, radiological & nuclear)
The majority of environmental pollution and contamination incidents are dealt with locally by the emergency services, local authorities and environmental organisations. However there are some exceptional or larger scale incidents such as the fire at the Buncefield Oil Depot or the contamination of several premises with the radioactive substance Polonium 210 which have wider environmental consequences that could require central government involvement and support.
For these exceptional or larger incidents, Defra is responsible in England for co-ordinating the environment aspects of the incident as part of the overall government response.
Environmental pollution incidents can be as the result of:
- Hazardous materials (HAZMAT) incidents which are the result of an accidental release of hazardous substances or materials
- Chemical, Biological, Radiological or Nuclear (CBRN) incidents those which involve the terrorist or deliberate release of CBRN materials or substances
- Releases from nuclear installations
In all cases, the emergency services will lead the response on the ground with the support from the local authorities and other organisations such as the Environment Agency. Defra’s role is to support this response, although in most cases the department does not have a direct operational role.
Further information, advice and guidance on environmental pollution and CBRN incidents can be found on the Government's "preparing for emergencies" site
If you wish to report an environmental pollution incident in England and Wales you can contact the Environment Agency Incident hotline on 0800 80 70 60.
Environmental Pollution Decontamination and Recovery
Where the environmental consequences of a HAZMAT or CBRN incident move towards clean-up and recovery, Defra would take on the role of lead government department responsible for co-ordinating the ongoing central response. The department would continue to support the local or regional response, co-ordinating any ongoing central government input.
There are several sources of guidance and further information on recovery planning and strategies which have been brought together in the National Recovery Guidance published by Communities and Local Government and Civil Contingencies Secretariat. The guidance includes recovery plan templates, recovery topic sheets and case studies and can be found on the UK Resilience website.
Government Decontamination Service
The Government Decontamination Service (GDS) is a government agency set up to support those responsible for decontamination by providing advice, guidance and access to a Framework of specialist decontamination services. More information on the GDS and how to contact the agency can be found on their website
See also:
Page last modified: 20 March 2008
Page published: 13 February 2008