Legislation
Some of the legislative requirements may originate from legislation or agreements made on an international or worldwide basis, such as EU Directives or Global protocols. However, the regulations that are issued for compliance in the UK arise from legislation enacted by the established procedures of the Houses of Parliament.
There are many important regulations that apply to a wide range of industrial workplaces and may be applicable to the installation and operation of a CHP plant.
More than 100 sets of regulations are now in place that have arisen from the Health and Safety at Work Act, and these are all under constant review and amendment. Regulations and amendments are normally issued as Statutory Instruments by the appropriate Government department.
The Health and Safety Executive produces a range of publications to supplement the issue of regulations, and these provide useful assistance and guidance with regard to the means of compliance. In addition, some of the above regulations have been supplemented with an HSE Approved Code of Practice, which provides planning and techniques to assist with the practical application of the regulations.
Of particular relevance and importance to gas turbine CHP plants is the Health and Safety Executive’s Guidance Note PM84 "Control of Safety Risks at Gas Turbines Used for Power Generation", which incorporates guidance on issues contained in the relevant regulations. HSE has launched a revised edition extensively revised since its original publication in 2000, providing much additional information, including: The guidance will help in drawing attention to hazards associated with GTs and describes ways in which the associated risks can be eliminated or reduced to an acceptable level.
Access to Regulations, Codes of Practice, and Other Documentation
Full text of all UK legislation is available to view at the Office of Public Sector Information (OPSI) website.
Information on the HSE Codes of Practice etc can be found at the Health and Safety Executive website. This website links to a includes a catalogue of all HSE publications, and to a subscription service for access to a wide range of HSE and other documentation.
In addition there is legislation designed to incentivise electricity generation such as the Renewables Obligation 2009 which created the Banded ROCs incentives, and the Energy Act 2008 which was used to create the Feed in Tariffs.
