The Environment (Principles, Governance and Biodiversity Targets (Wales) Bill

Earlier this month, the Environment (Principles, Governance and Biodiversity Targets (Wales) Bill (the “Bill”) was formally introduced by the Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Climate Change and Rural Affairs to the Sennedd (Welsh Parliament) (access full bill here).

The collective aim of the Bill is to strengthen and enhance our response to the climate and nature emergencies. 

Informed by more than 1,100 responses to its preceding White Paper, the Bill was greeted with both public support and pressure. Already, there are calls for stronger enforcement mechanisms and a broader application of environmental principles.

As it currently stands, the Bill seeks to establish environmental principles provisions to contribute to a high level of environmental protection, whilst aligning with Welsh policy and international law. 

This framework seeks to addresses three core challenges: 

1. combating the combined impact of climate and nature emergencies
2. protecting the environment from harm
3. responding to changes in environmental governance structures following the UK's departure from the EU

Part 1: Environmental Objective and Principles 

To achieve these core challenges, in Part 1, the Bill enshrines four key environmental principles into Welsh Law: 

• the precautionary principle
• the principle of prevention
• the principle that environmental damage should be rectified at source
• the polluter pays principle

However, these are not new ideas - these principles mirror those established in English law through the Environment Act 2021. However, there is a key distinction in their application. Ministers in England are required to “have regard to” environmental principles across all areas of policy making. In contrast, the Welsh bill imposes a more focused, arguably stronger duty, requiring ministers to “have special regard to the environmental principles” specifically when developing environmental policy. If done effectively, this could provide a model for other nations seeking to embed environmental responsibility into policy making.

Welsh Ministers are to be required to prepare and publish an “environmental principles and integrating environmental protection statement.” This statement will outline how the environmental principles are to be interpreted and applied in the development of environmental policy. It aims to implement the principles as practical tools, rather than abstract ideals.  Whether it will is likely to depend on how rigorously the statement is drafted – and enforced.

Part 2: The Office of Environmental Governance Wales 

Perhaps the most critical part of the Bill is Part 2. Post-Brexit, Wales, like the rest of the UK, left the EU’s system of environmental governance. England and Scotland established independent bodies in 2021; whilst Wales committed to address this governance gap in 2018, it did not go further than implementing an Interim Environmental Protection Assessor for Wales (“IEPAW”) was appointed in February 2021. Additionally, the IEPAW does not have the statutory investigation and enforcement powers to address complaints about compliance with environmental law by public authorities.

In replacing the “interim” measures, part two of the Bill establishes the Office of Environmental Governance Wales (“OEGW”), an independent environmental governance body. It will, as a statutory body, provide strategic oversight of environmental law compliance by public authorities in Wales. In certain circumstances, the OEGW may serve a compliance notice on the public authority, specifying the action required and a 30-day period to comply. It is empowered to take the public authority to the High Court for review upon failure to comply with such notice.  

Then what happens to Natural Resources Wales you may ask? The OEGW will sit above this tier of regulation alongside its UK counterparts, it does not replace Natural Resources. 

The amount of anticipation for such Welsh body places pressure on the Welsh Government to ensure the new watchdog is independent. In 2023, the Climate Change, Environment and Infrastructure Committee (“CCEI Committee”) concluded it will be an “unforgivable failure of this Welsh Government if the new body is not fully operational before the end of its term in office”. A step towards the new statutory is clearly one that’s welcomed, but already there are reservations concerning the level of independence the OEGW will have.  

Part 3: Biodiversity Targets 

Much like the rest of the UK, Wales is grappling with a biodiversity crisis. So much so that in 2021, the Senedd declared a “nature emergency” in response to the alarming decline of biodiversity in Wales – including a 2023 report showing 18% of the assessed species in Wales are threatened with extinction.

In response, Part 3 of the Bill sets out to amend the Environment (Wales) Act 2016 to introduce a legally binding biodiversity target framework. Its primary goal is halting biodiversity loss by 2030 and reversing the decline in biodiversity thereafter. 

Key elements of the proposed framework include:

• Headline and Supporting Targets 
• Local Nature Recovery Action Plans 
• Integration with Climate Goals 
• Monitoring and Accountability

At its highest level, the Welsh Ministers may now set targets in respect of any matter relating to biodiversity, so long as it contributes to halting or reversing biodiversity’s decline. In relation to each target, the regulation must specify a standard to be achieved, which is capable of being objectively measured and it must specify a date by which the standard is to be achieved. The Bill goes further to say that Ministers “must” exercise this power and set a target in respect of at least one matter within each priority areas. 

These priority areas are:

(a) reducing the risk of the extinction of native species; 

(b) the effective management of ecosystems; 

(c) reducing pollution; 

(d) the quality of evidence to inform decisions relating to biodiversity, access to that evidence and its use and application.

Part 3 makes it clear that the Bill does not view biodiversity in isolation, it recognises that the climate and nature crises are fundamentally interconnected. As well as protecting species and habitats, its commitment sets out to help Wales meet its 2050 net zero target. As a 2023 report found, 18% of the assessed species in Wales are threatened with extinction, it is clear that there is a necessity behind the Bill and the Welsh Government’s commitment to “a greener Wales”. 

What’s next?

This ambitious and long-awaited Bill is currently just at the first stage of its legislative journey and faces scrutiny by the CCEI Committee. The next step will be a Sennedd-wide debate, followed by a detailed line-by-line consideration in committee.

It is clear that for the Bill to have the capacity to deliver, three things must be ensured:

1. Environmental principles must shape real policy decisions, not just sit in statements. Ministers must be held to account for how they apply these principles 
2. The OEGW must be truly independent, well-resourced, and empowered to act. Without this, environmental principles risk becoming empty rhetoric.
3. The biodiversity framework must be backed by local action, with councils and communities given the tools to implement meaningful change on the ground.

We look forward with interest to observing how the legislative process for the Bill progresses.