NetRegs and Environment Agency guidance for farms

Farm and horticulture sites handle fuels, oils, pesticides, fertilisers, silage effluent, slurry and wash-down water every day. If these escape to land, ditches, drains or watercourses they can cause serious pollution incidents, enforcement action and costly clean-up. This page explains how to use Environment Agency expectations and NetRegs pollution prevention guidance in practical, day-to-day spill management on farms, with a question-and-solution approach focused on compliance, spill control and environmental protection.

Question: What is NetRegs and why does it matter for farms?

Solution: NetRegs is a UK guidance service that helps businesses, including farms, understand and meet environmental requirements. While guidance is not the same as a permit, it is commonly used to demonstrate that you are applying recognised good practice. For many farm pollution risks (oil storage, yard drainage, pesticide handling, nutrient losses, waste storage and emergency planning), NetRegs-style guidance supports an evidence-based approach to preventing water pollution and reducing the likelihood of reportable incidents.

In England, the Environment Agency is the regulator for environmental permitting and pollution incidents. For farmers, this typically translates into: preventing pollutants entering surface water, groundwater and drains; providing suitable secondary containment (bunding); keeping spill response equipment available; and training staff so incidents are controlled quickly.

Question: What do regulators expect on a farm when it comes to pollution prevention?

Solution: Regulators generally expect you to identify where pollution could happen, put proportionate controls in place, and prove you can respond quickly if something goes wrong. In practice, that means you should:

• Know your pollutants: diesel, hydraulic oil, engine oil, AdBlue, pesticides, herbicides, fertiliser liquids, milk, silage effluent, slurry and detergents.
• Control the route to water: understand yard drainage, surface water gullies, soakaways, ditches and field drains.
• Provide containment: bunded storage, drip trays and containment under transfer points.
• Prepare for emergencies: a spill kit at the point of risk, drain protection, and a clear response plan.
• Maintain and inspect: routine checks for tanks, IBCs, bowsers, pumps, hoses and valves, plus records.

Question: Which farm activities are most likely to cause a pollution incident?

Solution: Focus your controls on the highest-risk, most frequent tasks. Common farm spill and leakage scenarios include:

• Fuel delivery and refuelling: overfilling, hose failures, poor coupling, or leaving a nozzle unattended.
• Vehicle and plant maintenance: oil changes and hydraulic leaks in yards where drains lead to watercourses.
• Pesticide and sprayer filling: concentrate spills, washings and handling errors near gullies.
• Fertiliser and liquid nutrient storage: IBC damage, valve leaks and bund failure.
• Silage and slurry management: effluent escapes and contaminated run-off.
• Waste and chemical storage: poorly segregated liquids, damaged containers and uncovered areas.

Solution thinking is simple: control the liquid at source (containment), block pathways to drains (drain protection), and have rapid absorbent capacity (spill kits) where incidents are most likely.

Question: How do I apply NetRegs-style guidance to my farm yard drainage?

Solution: Treat drainage as the main route to pollution. Many farmyards have surface water gullies that discharge to a ditch, stream or soakaway. If oils, pesticides or wash-down enter these drains, the incident can escalate quickly.

Use a simple, practical approach:

1. Map your drains: identify every gully, channel and outfall. Confirm where it discharges.
2. Protect key gullies: keep drain covers or drain mats close to high-risk areas (refuelling points, chemical stores, maintenance bays).
3. Separate clean and dirty water: keep wash-down and contaminated run-off away from surface water drainage wherever possible.
4. Keep absorbents to hand: place spill kits so staff can react in minutes, not after a drive to the workshop.

If you want a deeper practical spill-control overview tailored to agriculture and horticulture, see Essential spill management for agriculture and horticulture.

Question: What spill control equipment helps demonstrate compliance on farms?

Solution: The best equipment is the equipment that is positioned at the point of risk, is suitable for your liquids, and is easy for staff to use under pressure. Consider these farm-ready controls:

• Spill kits: oil-only spill kits for fuels and oils, and chemical spill kits for pesticide and chemical handling areas. Put them at refuelling points, workshops, chemical stores and mobile on service vehicles.
• Absorbent pads, socks and rolls: pads for surface wipes, socks to dam and divert, rolls for long runs along channels and thresholds.
• Drip trays: under pumps, couplings, IBC taps and maintenance work. Drip trays reduce chronic drips that can become a reportable issue over time.
• Bunding and secondary containment: bunded pallets for IBCs and drums, and bunded areas for bulk storage where appropriate. Good bunding controls a spill at source before it reaches drainage.
• Drain protection: drain mats or covers for immediate sealing during an incident, especially near pesticide handling and refuelling.

On a working farm, mobile spill response is often as important as static storage. A small spill kit in a pickup or service van can prevent a minor hydraulic leak in a field from becoming a larger watercourse problem at the yard.

Question: How should a farm respond to a spill to align with best practice?

Solution: Build a simple spill response routine that everyone can follow. A practical, NetRegs-aligned spill response sequence is:

1. Stop the source: shut off pumps, close valves, right containers, isolate equipment.
2. Protect drains and watercourses: cover gullies immediately and use absorbent socks to block routes.
3. Contain the spill: ring with socks and use pads/rolls to absorb, working from the outside in.
4. Collect and dispose correctly: bag contaminated absorbents and store safely pending collection as controlled waste where required.
5. Report and record: record what happened, what was used, and what you will change to prevent a repeat. If there is risk to a watercourse, reporting may be required.

Make this real by running a short spill drill at least annually: set a scenario (diesel spill by refuelling point), time the response, and confirm staff know where the drain protection and spill kits are stored.

Question: How do I manage pesticide and chemical areas to reduce pollution risk?

Solution: Pesticides and agricultural chemicals can be high impact at low volumes. Good practice is to keep handling and mixing away from drains, use containment, and ensure washings do not escape to surface water systems.

Practical controls include:

• Designate a mixing and filling area with clear drainage management and immediate access to drain covers.
• Use bunded storage for liquids where appropriate, including IBCs and drums, and keep containers in good condition.
• Choose a chemical spill kit for areas handling pesticides, herbicides, disinfectants and detergents, and ensure staff know it is not the same as an oil-only kit.
• Prevent cross-contamination by keeping absorbents and waste bags clearly labelled and segregated.

Question: What inspection and record-keeping should a farm keep?

Solution: Keep records that show you proactively manage pollution risk. This supports compliance and helps you find issues before they become incidents. A simple farm checklist approach works well:

• Weekly: check bowsers, tanks, IBC valves, hoses, fittings, drip trays and the condition of bunded areas.
• Monthly: confirm spill kits are complete (pads, socks, bags, PPE) and replace used items immediately.
• After deliveries: note any issues with couplings, overfill, damaged containers, or near misses.
• Training log: who has been briefed, when drills occurred, and any corrective actions.

Question: What are realistic farm examples of good spill control?

Solution: Use site-specific examples as templates:

• Example 1 - Refuelling point: store an oil-only spill kit, drain cover and absorbent socks in a weatherproof box beside the tank. Place a drip tray under the nozzle cradle and keep a small pack of pads for quick wipe-downs.
• Example 2 - Workshop bay: keep drip trays under service areas, place absorbent rolls along door thresholds to stop oil tracking, and keep a clearly marked spill kit near the entrance for rapid access.
• Example 3 - Chemical store and sprayer filling: keep a chemical spill kit and drain protection within a few steps of the mixing area, and ensure the area is managed so washings do not enter surface water drainage.

Question: Where can I find the official guidance?

Solution: Use official sources to validate your approach and to brief staff. Key references include:

• NetRegs - environmental guidance for businesses
• Environment Agency (England)

For internal support on selecting spill kits and building a practical farm spill response, use the agriculture and horticulture guide: Essential spill management for agriculture and horticulture.

Question: What should I do next on my farm?

Solution: Start with the highest-risk points and make improvements that are easy to maintain:

1. Walk the site and mark all drains, gullies and outfalls.
2. Place spill kits and drain protection at refuelling, chemical handling and maintenance areas.
3. Add drip trays under transfer points and known leak locations.
4. Brief staff on a simple spill response routine and run a short drill.
5. Record inspections and restock used absorbents immediately.

These steps support pollution prevention, improve spill response time, and help demonstrate that your farm is applying recognised good practice aligned with Environment Agency expectations and NetRegs pollution prevention guidance.