Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her department is taking to ensure the Environment Agency has the necessary direction and resource to develop permitting guidance for novel low-carbon ammonia projects, to support their transition from R&D to commercial applications and accelerate decarbonisation.
Defra officials are closely engaging with the Environment Agency (EA) about the regulation of novel low-carbon ammonia technologies. EA colleagues are reviewing areas where further work is required to support permitting of these technologies and have been engaging with UK environmental regulators, expert groups and trade associations. Defra will continue to ensure EA work is appropriately resourced to develop guidance to give operators regulatory clarity while ensuring the environment and health are protected. Defra's recent consultation on modernising environmental permitting for industry also included a number of proposals aimed at supporting innovation and which would enable R&D in this sector. The Government response for this consultation will be published at the earliest opportunity.