Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution

SELECTION OF THE TOPIC FOR THE NEXT MAJOR STUDY

The general process

The general process for selecting topics for study is set out in ‘Guidelines for the Conduct of Commission Studies’ which is available at http://www.rcep.org.uk/guidelines.htm It should be noted that these are not hard and fast rules – the process is amended as necessary to ensure it works effectively.

The first step is the preparation of a long list, which draws from the list of topics previously considered, and includes suggestions from Members of the Royal Commission, the Secretariat, and also members of the public or other people/organisations we have contact with. The Royal Warrant also provides for the possibility that a topic for study might be referred to the Commission by a government minister.

The Commission then discusses the long list and distils it into an agreed shortlist, which is issued for public comment, and letters sent to numerous organisations and government departments. This also invites people to suggest other topics for study.

The Commission then discusses the shortlist in light of the comments received and decides which of the topics (both those on the shortlist and any others suggested to them) should be taken forward as a major study, and on occasion also decides which of the topics might be suitable for a short study. This decision is a judgment based on the information available on each subject, how well it meets the criteria for study (see below), how timely a study would be, and what is considered to have the most pressing need.

In choosing a topic for study, the Commission is guided by the following criteria (although any one study may not necessarily satisfy all of them):

• the topics chosen should be what the Commission’s First Report called ‘priorities for enquiry’: issues which require detailed and rigorous analysis before satisfactory policies can be adopted;

• they should raise wide issues, both intellectually (in the sense of spanning several disciplines) and organisationally (in the sense of not falling within the terms of reference of any other single body);

• they are likely to involve general issues of principle;

• they should not normally duplicate other studies already in progress or planned in the near future;

• there should be a reasonable prospect that worthwhile conclusions can be produced within two years with the resources likely to be available to the Commission;

• they should take into account trends in environmental policy at European and global levels which seem to have significant implications for the UK.

The implication of these criteria is that the Commission generally undertakes complex and challenging studies covering broad cross-disciplinary issues.

In choosing topics, The Commission also seeks to take into account trends in environmental policy at European and global levels which seem likely to have significant implications for the UK.

Ultimately, the Commission has limited resources, and can only choose one major study at a time, which means at anyone time there are up to two major studies running – the next one to report will be the 27th Report on The Environmental Effects of Novel Materials and Applications.

The shortlist

The shortlist was derived from a long list of approximately forty topics, made up from the previous lists and suggestions by Members of the Commission and Secretariat, professional bodies, public bodies and members of the public. The Royal Commission discussed the long list, considering the merits of each topic, and a simple voting process was used (each Member had ten votes to apportion to the topics however they saw fit) which broadly ranked the topics that Members thought were important and worthy of study. It was agreed that the first eight of these should constitute the shortlist and be published for comment. The following list was published on 18 July and comments were invited by 24 August:

• Climate adaptation in the UK
• Environment and human wellbeing
• Geoengineering for climate change
• Noise pollution
• Phosphate management
• Plastics and the environment
• The electromagnetic environment
• Water management

Deciding on a topic

There were approximately 180 respondents to the invitation to comment on the shortlist and these included approximately 10 further suggestions as to what might be a suitable topic for study. The responses were from members of the public, government departments, the Scottish Executive, public bodies and professional organisations and academia. The comments were presented to the Members to inform their discussion, which is summarised below.

Climate adaptation in the UK

The Commission noted this was particularly well supported by various public bodies, trade organisations and professional bodies. Many of the comments suggested that the time had come for attention to be paid to adapting to the effects of climate change as well as trying to mitigate the effects – an argument with which the Commission agreed. It was noted that the changes in our environment will depend on the success or otherwise of mitigation strategies, and we will need to adapt accordingly. In so doing, we should minimise as far as possible any unintended consequences of our adaptive measures. It is unlikely that there is a single set of answers, but there are important analyses to be conducted on how best to prepare for the future. Areas that this study could include are water management, agriculture, transport, socio-economic factors, biodiversity, energy, health and wellbeing. It was agreed that this should be the topic of the 28th report by the Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution. It was considered that this is the most pressing issue on the shortlist, and that the Royal Commission could make a significant, timely and useful contribution on this subject.

Environment and human wellbeing

Amongst the comments this topic received, there was notable support from those involved in health and health-based research, and also from third sector organisations. Some caution was, however, expressed that wellbeing had been covered significantly in the 26th report by the Commission (The Urban Environment), a view that was echoed in the discussion by the Commission. If a further study was to be conducted in this area, the Commission felt there would need to be very clear questions to address so as to avoid duplicating the work of others. The Commission firmly believes that the issue of wellbeing is embedded in many of its reports, and was likely to continue being a major factor in its future studies. On the basis that the Commission will address this issue more generally through its future work programme, Wellbeing should not be the subject of the next major study, and should be removed from the list for future consideration.

Geoengineering for climate change

There was a limited response to this as a subject, although some professional and public bodies expressed support for it. In discussion, the Commission concluded that one reason for the limited response might have been that it is not a widely understood term or process, and that perhaps there was a reluctance to comment on something that was poorly understood. The Commission considered whether this in itself could be an opportunity for them to investigate an area that was still relatively novel. It was agreed, however, that whilst this subject is important there was not enough support or information to suggest that it is yet suitable for a major study. It was agreed that this should remain on the list of topics for a possible future study, as the subject may develop further over the next few years.

Noise pollution

This was another topic that had reasonable support in the comments received, including from those involved in health matters, and members of the public. The Commission agreed that this is an important issue which needs attention. However, of the topics considered, the Commission did not think there was the most pressing need for this to be studied at this stage. It was agreed that Noise Pollution should remain on the list for the future, possibly as a short study.

Phosphate management

The comments received only expressed limited support for this and several of these suggested that it should be studied as part of Water management. In the discussion it was suggested that a study might show this to be a very real example of the need for sustainable resource management, as well as investigating the pollution aspects. However, the Commission felt that it was probably too narrow a topic in its own right and agreed it should not be the subject of the next major study, although it should be looked at again in the future.

Plastics and the environment

The comments received on this subject were mixed, with some strong support and some clear opposition. The Commission agreed that this was an interesting and important topic, but they were not persuaded that it was sufficiently substantive to warrant a major study at this stage. It was agreed that the issues of pollution and recycling in particular meant that it should definitely be kept open for future consideration, possibly as a short study.

The electromagnetic environment

This topic elicited the largest number of responses. There were also comments from public bodies, government departments, academics and trade organisations expressing a range of views from advocating that it be studied through to encouraging the Commission not to pursue this. The Commission acknowledged that this was clearly a very important issue, particularly to some sections of the public with regards to public health. The Commission noted that a lot of work has been done on the health aspects (including the Stewart Report) but less has been done on wider environmental effects. Because of the limited environmental data and extensive research into human effects, the Commission was not certain it could add anything to the debate in the next two years, and that it should not, therefore, be the subject of the next major study. It was agreed that this area should continue to be watched, and would remain on the list for future consideration, particularly if the environmental aspects develop further.

Water management

The comments received on this subject were mixed, with several suggesting that it should be included as part of Climate Adaptation in the UK. It was noted in discussion that there are many organisations looking at water issues, particularly after the summer floods, and it was not clear that the Commission could add much to the debate at this stage. However, as part of a study into Climate Adaptation in the UK, water management would undoubtedly be an important issue.  Whilst the Commission studies Climate adaptation in the UK it was agreed that Water management would not be considered as a topic for a possible future study.

Other topics

Of the other topics suggested, one was supported by three separate people/organisations – biofuels. The Commission did not feel that the other suggestions would be suitable as major studies, but in the discussion it was agreed that biofuels might make a good subject for a short study. There is a lot of confusion on this subject, and the environmental benefits are not clear, in particular the concerns over land use. It was agreed that the Secretariat would look into this further.