Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

Related legal acts

Key definition

Environment definition

What does Environment mean? In legal practice, environment refers to the natural media and the living systems potentially affected by a project, operation or emission. UK environmental legislation commonly defines it as including air, water and land, and any living organisms (including humans) and ecosystems supported by those media. Similar formulations are used across England & Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, and in Irish environmental legislation; exact wording varies by statute and context, but usage is broadly consistent. Where a regime provides a definition, courts apply that text; where it does not, the term carries its ordinary meaning. The concept sets the scope of regulatory...

Managing contaminated land risk: ESG, audits and site investigations, remediation, verification and risk transfer (England and Wales)

Published by a LexisNexis Environment expert

Practice notes

environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors are now central to managing environmental risk, with mounting expectations on companies to evaluate their environmental and social performance. Sustainability underpins the environment agency’s (EA) land contamination risk management (LCRM) guidance, which requires climate change to be addressed within risk assessments. In recent years, organisations such as The Society of Brownfield Risk Assessment (SoBRA) and CL:AIRE have issued supporting guidance and schemes that reinforce the EA’s sustainability objective. For more on ESG, see Practice Note: ESG—new starter guide.

What is environmental risk?

The EA’s LCRM guidance, published in October 2020 and replacing the 2019/2020 versions, sets out how to assess and manage risks arising from land contamination. Environmental risk is one of several ESG matters relevant to organisations and stakeholders, alongside risk areas such as health and safety and data security management. Risk is defined as the combination of the probability, or frequency, that a specified hazard will occur and the magnitude of the consequences if it does. See Practice Note: Environmental risk—environmental risk assessment...

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Web page updated on 21/05/2026

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