Tricia Henton, Director of Environmental Protection at the Environment Agency said:

"We’ve been working closely with industry to set challenging but realistic environmental targets, which work towards meeting objectives for the next five to fifteen years.

"These environmental plans are not an end product, but part of an ongoing process to work with industry to reduce risks to the environment and monitor performance.

"This is part of our modern approach to regulation - to reach environmental standards by targeting resources to where there is the most environmental risk and going beyond traditional regulation by using a mix of regulation and alternatives such as voluntary initiatives."

The agreements, known as sector plans, propose environmental priorities, objectives and indicators of performance. Some actions can be enforced by regulations and others are voluntary. The timetables for key actions for both industry and the Environment Agency are summarised in each of the plans.

The targets in the sector plans will:

focus on the most significant risks and impacts that the sector poses to the environment

deliver improvements in environmental management and performance

help the Environment Agency to prioritise and target its resources where they are needed most

achieve environmental benefits (such as better use of resources and supply chain commitments) beyond those which can be achieved through regulation

monitor progress in delivering environmental improvements within and between sectors

The first of the plans, covering the chemicals, nuclear and cement industry are available on the Environment Agency website.

Tricia Henton continued:

"We are encouraged by the support and contribution to the sector plans from industry and will continue to work together with operators, trade associations, environmental interest groups and others to develop further and carry out the plans."

ENDS

Notes to editors

Full sector plans are available from the Environment Agency website.

Many key stakeholders have already had input into the plans. However as each sector is diverse and complex, the Environment Agency is aware that others will want to comment. The Environment Agency will invite views on these first three plans and consider any comments that are made on them. The plans will then be updated and we will publish them again. We will review our approach regularly in light of their success and any new information.

One of the challenges for the cement industry includes further reductions of emissions through improvements to kiln technology, pollution control equipment and sound environmental management. Objectives include:

To reduce the consumption of natural resources per tonne of cement manufactured.

To reduce the amount of cement process waste residues disposed of per tonne of cement manufactured.

To reduce emissions of greenhouse gases per tonne of cement manufactured.

The sector plan for the chemical industry calls for wider consideration of the full lifecycle of chemicals. Objectives include:

To reduce the consumption of resources in chemical manufacturing.

To minimise solid wastes and air and water emissions from chemical manufacturing.

To promote product stewardship and wider supply chain benefits.

Objectives set by the sector plan for the nuclear industry include:

To reduce the consumption of natural resources.

To minimise and manage solid wastes.

To reduce discharges to air and water.

During 2005/06 the Environment Agency is developing plans for the waste, water, power generation, farming and food and drink sectors.

The sector plans will help the Environment Agency reach the goals set out in its corporate strategy. The strategy sets out how we will promote our vision of ‘A Greener Business World’ and why businesses need to have environmental concerns at the heart of their thinking.