Membership of the JEP
Interested in becoming a member of the Joint Environmental Programme?
The JEP focus continues to be on environmental issues relating to the operation of combustion plant. Decarbonisation of our sector is of critical importance and therefore the JEP work programme is also considering the environmental implications of decrbonisation technologies such as CCS and hydrogen combustion, as well as the environmental implications of hydrogen production.
As a guiding principle, membership of the JEP is available to electricity producers that operate combustion plant.
As well as managing a research programme covering issues that are relevant to the member companies, the JEP provides a vehicle for the power sector operators to discuss and negotiate collectively on sector-level issues with the UK Environmental Regulators. These collective discussions are carried out via a Quarterly Forum meeting and subject-specific working groups (Air Issues, Byproducts, Emissions Methodologies and Permitting, Water). The emphasis is on developing an environmental regulatory “level playing field”, within which individual operators can then carry out their commercial activities and decisions. The JEP has strong links with Energy UK, with meetings between JEP, Energy UK and the four environmental regulators taking place on a quarterly basis.
The JEP only covers areas where there are no competitive issues between individual companies (i.e. covering sector-level issues only). Commercially sensitive issues are specifically excluded from JEP projects and from consideration at all JEP meetings and any wider meetings where JEP particpates.
The JEP is not a lobbying organisation and does not participate in lobbying activities. However, a portion of JEP work comprises technical analysis that member companies can draw upon in lobbying discussions if they consider it to be of value.
Benefits of JEP membership
Forward looking
JEP takes a forward look at trends in legislative and regulatory thinking, identifies any gaps and funds work to cover these. “No surprises” for members – early awareness of developing issues
Cost sharing
Cost sharing on projects addressing issues of mutual interest - without access to JEP, an operator may need to replicate JEP work on business-critical risks. The collaborative work programme also provides access to experts within the industry.
Liaison with UK Regulatory bodies
There is strong liaison with UK Regulatory bodies via regular meetings which help to ensure the correct focus for the programme. JEP members are representatives on a number of European advisory bodies. This provides a consistent and technically-robust industry stance when discussing environmental issues with Government and, especially, the UK regulators (EA, NRW and SEPA) – helping to ensure cost-effective outcomes for Operators.