Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs) - APEM Ltd

Other Consenting Support 

• Site Selection & Feasibility Studies: We provide advice to clients on the evaluation of development constraints and appraise consent risk in the context of planning policy and legislation. We undertake site selection and feasibility studies for a range of projects. We provide our clients with planning and environmental advice, supported by our GIS capability, to identify areas for future development and development options (for example grid connection locations and cable routing).  Our team of in-house experts and GIS technicians undertake site constraint and boundary analyses identifying relevant biological, physical and human constraints.
• Strategic Planning and Assessment: We provide strategic planning and assessment services to a range of clients in the public sector, Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) and industry bodies, through both desk-based assessment/review and stakeholder led studies. We provide evaluation and appraisal, research and development, development of evidence-based products, strategic assessment of the impact of activities on the marine environment, socio-economic valuation and quality assurance of existing products.
• Consenting and permitting plans: We design and produce consenting and permitting plans and matrices addressing the requirements of a variety of legislation in the UK including the Planning Act, The Electricity Act Section 36, the Town and Country Planning Act, marine licensing regimes, the Water Framework Directive, nature conservation legislation, and oil and gas legislation.
• Due Diligence Support: We have built a strong reputation not only for their interdisciplinary technical and scientific expertise, but for their business and transactional knowledge. In particular, we provide due diligence services to our clients assessing the environmental and permitting risks associated with project financing, acquisitions and divestments.
• Environmental survey management: Meeting the requirements of planning legislation and the EIA regulations often involves a need for environmental surveys to be undertaken for baseline characterisation and environmental monitoring. We provide our clients with the expertise to identify the requirements for such data, to scope and specify data collection and support in the procurement and management of suitably qualified survey contractors. We have extensive in-house technical knowledge and market knowledge which we use to build project teams, utilising an external supply chain where that secures best value and quality to meet our clients’ requirements on a case-by-case basis, acting to ensure delivery and quality standards are met at a level proportionate to their needs.
• Consent Compliance Management: We deliver compliance services during the construction and operational phases of development projects to ensure consent conditions are met in a comprehensive and timely manner. We produce required compliance documentation for regulatory approval, develop and manage environmental monitoring and mitigation schemes and work with our clients and their contractors to manage and communicate consent compliance requirements. We provide regulatory reporting, as well as preparing applications for additional and ancillary licensing services to enable construction works, including permit variations, European protected species licensing and additional marine licensing requirements. As part of our post compliance work we use our established relationships to support the ongoing liaison with stakeholders during all post-consent activities.
• Stakeholder Management: We maintain close relationships with a range of key stakeholders across the UK and Ireland and routinely support our clients in stakeholder engagement and negotiation. We provide effective and proactive stakeholder engagement strategies and consultation management, including consultation compliant with the requirements of the Planning Act 2008 for Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects. Our expertise allows us to support both informal and statutory consultation with a range of statutory and non-statutory bodies, interested parties, commercial interests and local communities. Our staff have also led multiple national workshops to inform the development of policy, together with focused stakeholder interviews and online surveys targeting a full range of commercial and public sectors.
• Conservation Led Development (Habitats Regulations Assessment, Marine Conservation Zone, and European Protected Species): We provide expertise on the assessment of development projects in relation to nature conservation legislation, particularly the Habitats Regulations (in relation to Natura 2000 sites), but also the Wildlife and Countryside Act (SSSIs) and the Marine and Coastal Access Act (Marine Conservation Zones(MCZ)), as well other designated sites. Our teams prepare Habitats Regulations Assessments (HRA) for a range of development activities and relating to a variety of Natura 2000 sites and features, undertaking HRA screening and preparing HRA reports assessing likely significant effects and adverse effects to accompany consent applications under a variety of legislative regimes. We also prepare HRA reports to accompany plan level proposals and strategic assessments. Our experts prepared the UK’s first MCZ assessment and we continue to provide MCZ assessments in support of consent applications across a range of marine development sectors.