The Environment Agency (EA) has received payments from a number of public and private sector organisations after they failed to fall in line with the requirements of the Carbon Reduction Commitment (CRC).
The scheme, which is to be scrapped in 2019, requires participants to measure and report their electricity and gas supplies on an annual basis to the CRC registry which calculates CRC emissions in tonnes of CO2.
The firms covered by the mandatory scheme are then required to buy allowances for every tonne of carbon emitted. This means that organisations that decrease their emissions can lower their costs under the CRC.
Despite CRC being a government led scheme, the EA has revealed that it imposed a £2,850 penalty on the Planning Inspectorate after it failed to submit an Annual Report for the 2013/14 compliance year.
A Planning Inspectorate spokesman commented: “We are disappointed to have received a fine from the EA for failing to make a report within the required timescale. We are actively working with our building provider to ensure that the necessary information disclosure is provided ahead of future deadlines.”
Merkur Casino was hit with a larger fine of £3,466 after the report it submitted for the 2012/13 reporting year proved to be inaccurate. Similarly, Stobart Transport and Distribution was fined £2,957 for the same offence.
Despite the CRC coming to an end in 2019 when the Climate Change Levy will be increased to make up the revenue shortfall for the government, companies eligible to pay are still required to fall in line.
This means firms that use more than 6GWh per year of electricity and have at least one half-hourly meter settled on the half-hourly electricity market must submit accurate reports on time to the CRC registry.
This article has been amended to include comment from the Planning Inspectorate.
