Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, which organisation is responsible for carrying out environmental impact assessments for hydraulic fracturing developments.

Where an environmental impact assessment is required, the applicant must produce an environmental statement to accompany the planning application. The local planning authority will consider the environmental statement and other relevant information when determining the planning application.

We do not hold information on the likely future annual costs of environmental impact assessments in respect of hydraulic fracturing development. Estimating annual costs would be difficult given uncertainties over the number of proposals coming forward each year. Additionally the costs of individual environmental impact assessments will depend on factors such as the scope and level of detail of the information required to assess the likely significant environmental effects of the proposal and will vary on a case by case basis

The majority of the cost in respect of an environmental impact assessment will be borne by the applicant. The industry has already committed to undertake environmental impact assessment for any exploration well that involves hydraulic fracturing.

A Government amendment to the Infrastructure Bill requires that, before issuing consent for associated hydraulic fracturing, the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change must be satisfied that the environmental impact of the development has been taken into account by the local planning authority.