The Environment Act 1995 established both the Environment Agency for England and Wales (EA) and the Scottish Environmental Protection Agency (SEPA). These were set up to further the aims of Integrated Pollution Control (IPC) introduced in the Environmental Protection Act 1990. The agencies were empowered, under the 1995 Act, with the role of competent authority as defined in EU Directive 91/156/EEC. The EA brought together the functions previously carried out by the National Rivers Authority (NRA) and Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Pollution (HMIP), as well as the waste regulation functions of 83 local authorities, and the functions of a number of small units from the Department of the Environment who dealt with aspects of waste regulation and contaminated land. SEPA comprises the seven former river purification boards, the three island council river purification authorities, HM Industrial Pollution Inspectorate, and the waste regulation and (unlike in England and Wales) local air pollution function of the island and district councils. Both the EA and SEPA started their statutory duties on 1 April 1996.

The EA's primary aim is "to protect and improve the environment and make a contribution towards the delivery of sustainable development through the integrated management of air, land and water" (Environment Agency 1999). The main responsibilities of the EA are to:

• apply standards by giving authorisations, licences and consents for emissions, discharges and disposals to air, water and land
• monitor compliance and enforcement
• regulate the import, export and movement of waste
• assess national waste disposal needs and priorities
• monitor environmental conditions, publish statistics and commission research
• act as a statutory consultee (e.g. in town and country planning matters)
• provide authoritative and independent advice to government, and advice and guidance to industry on best environmental practice (Lane and Peto 1995).

In Scotland, SEPA fulfils a similar function to the EA (Information for Industry 1996). In addition, SEPA has taken over many of the duties of the Hazardous Waste Inspectorate.

The Environment and Heritage Service (EHS), Northern Ireland's equivalent to the EA or SEPA, also came into being on 1 April 1996. The EHS was created from the environment service of the Department of the Environment (Northern Ireland) under the Next Steps scheme. The scheme set up the EHS as an arms-length agency, as part of an initiative to move responsibilities out of the hands of central government departments (Information for Industry Ltd 1999). However, EHS staff are still employed by the Department of the Environment (Northern Ireland).

The aims of the EHS are "to protect and conserve the natural and built environment, and to promote its appreciation for the benefit of present and future generations". Its main responsibilities are:

• environmental protection (covering both water and air quality)
• the control of radioactive substances
• countryside and wildlife matters
• historic monuments and buildings (Information for Industry 1996).