Your Rights Under the Environmental Protection Act 1990

Originally written by Jeff Durham, updated by the editorial team on 19th May 2026

What the Environmental Protection Act 1990 covers

The Environmental Protection Act 1990 is one of the main laws dealing with pollution and nuisance across the United Kingdom. While it applies throughout England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, there are variations in how it is implemented in each nation, with some responsibilities devolved to other legislative bodies.

The Act gives local councils the power to investigate complaints and take action when someone's behaviour affects the quality of life in a residential area. It covers a broad range of environmental problems, from industrial pollution to disputes between neighbours. If something counts as a statutory nuisance under this law, your council has a duty to look into it and can require the person responsible to stop or reduce the problem.

For residents dealing with ongoing issues caused by a neighbour, this Act can provide a formal route when informal approaches have failed, though outcomes will depend on the specific circumstances of each case.

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Smoke and air quality issues

Smoke from a neighbouring property can fall within the scope of the Act if it affects your ability to use and enjoy your home. This might come from regular bonfires, wood burners, or other sources that produce persistent or heavy smoke.

The Act does not ban bonfires or wood burning outright. What matters is whether the smoke amounts to a statutory nuisance. This usually depends on how often it happens, how much smoke is produced, and whether it unreasonably interferes with your property or health.

If you are affected by smoke from business premises, such as a factory or commercial kitchen, the same principles apply. Councils can serve an abatement notice requiring the source to reduce emissions or change their practices. Failure to comply can result in fines or further legal action.

When making a complaint, it helps to keep a record of dates, times and how the smoke affected you. Once a council receives a complaint that appears to concern a potential statutory nuisance, it has a duty to investigate further.

Your situation may be slightly different. ask a question below ↓ and our editorial team will reply with our advice.

Noise nuisance

Noise is one of the most common complaints dealt with under the Environmental Protection Act 1990. This can include loud music, barking dogs, machinery, DIY work at antisocial hours, or any persistent noise that interferes with your reasonable enjoyment of your home.

The Noise Act 1996 also addresses noise complaints, particularly at night, but the two Acts serve different functions. The Environmental Protection Act covers noise at any time of day and addresses a broader range of public health matters. It allows councils to act against both extreme one off incidents and ongoing lower level disturbances.

Councils will assess whether the noise amounts to a statutory nuisance by considering factors such as:

The volume and frequency of the noise
The time of day or night it occurs
The nature of the area and what would be considered normal
Whether the noise could reasonably be avoided or reduced

If the council decides the noise is a statutory nuisance, it must serve an abatement notice on the person responsible. This legally requires them to stop or limit the noise. Ignoring an abatement notice is a criminal offence and can lead to prosecution and fines.

Other nuisances and how to take action

The Act covers more than just smoke and noise. Other issues that may qualify as statutory nuisances include accumulations of rubbish, fumes, gases, dust, odours, and problems caused by insects or animals kept in a way that affects neighbours. Damp or defective premises that harm health can also fall under the Act, though these complaints are more commonly handled through housing enforcement.

Each complaint is assessed on its own facts. What counts as a nuisance in one situation may not in another, depending on the circumstances and the local environment.

If you are experiencing ongoing problems, the first step is usually to contact your local council's environmental health team. Most councils have online complaint forms and can advise on what evidence they need.

In some cases, you can also take private legal action through the magistrates' court under section 82 of the Act. This route does not require council involvement. However, you will need to show that the nuisance exists or is likely to recur. It is advisable to seek legal advice before considering this option.

For detailed information on statutory nuisances and how they are enforced, GOV.UK provides official guidance. Citizens Advice can also help you understand your options if you are unsure how to proceed.

The Next Step

Now that you have read through the advice above, you might want to put it into practice. Our Neighbour Rights Checker lets you check your legal rights in any neighbour dispute. Takes 1 minute. Try it now →

Showing 20 of 221 questions

Ask Problem Neighbours a Question

ProblemNeighbours Editor 01/06/2026 at 3:00 am

@T That sounds really wearing, especially with a child in the house. Keep a diary of dates, times and what you hear or smell, then report it formally to your housing association as antisocial behaviour, and to the council's environmental health team as a statutory nuisance under the EPA 1990. Cannabis use is also a police matter, so report it to 101 or anonymously via Crimestoppers. Don't withhold rent though, it'll only land you in trouble and weaken your case.

T 01/06/2026 at 12:27 am

I have a neighbour who is smoking weed! I’ve complained so he now goes out of his house to smoke it off of the close. He is going in and out all night and when he returns he has to walk down an alleyway which is in between our houses… he then coughs really loudly and spits!! He does this every time to the point where I felt as if he does it on purpose as a protest almost!! For the fact he has to leave his property to smoke it…I have a window upstairs on my landing that’s facing out to this alleyway! If I have my window shut I don’t hear this nuisance coughing and spitting all night …because he then will check to see if my window is shut and then smoke the weed down the alleyway which is close to my bedroom..which is even worse as how dare you think you can do that! So disrespectful!!! The ends of the weed is down the alleyway as proof! That he has been stood there! I’m fuming about this!!! All he does it smoke, spit and cough!!! It’s stressing me out and effecting mine and my daughters wellbeing!!! The fact he has the nerve to smoke it close to our bedroom windows
Is so infuriating..but I’ve decided to keep
My window open all day and night now
So he cannot hide down the alleyway and smoke it!!! As even with a window shut smells
And things can seep through any small gaps around my windows! But he then just loudly goes in and out all evening until 1-2am coughing & spitting!! Is he allowed to do this!!!! It’s disturbing my peace I cannot sleep until I feel
Like he has finished going in and out!!! I’ve complained but I will withhold rent in the future as I’m fed up with it ! I live in a shared ownership home and his house is rented through the housing association.

ProblemNeighbours Editor 18/05/2026 at 9:16 am

@Chelle Sounds grim, and sadly you're far from alone in that experience. If the properties really are in that state, it's worth reporting them to the council's Environmental Health team, as they can inspect and force the landlord to act under the Housing Health and Safety Rating System. Rogue landlords can also be reported to Shelter and to the council's private rented sector enforcement team. Keep photos, dates and any correspondence, as that evidence makes a real difference.

Chelle 03/10/2023 at 2:34 am

I advise anyone contemplating renting a flat in sycamore garden's STATION STREET, LONGSHAW STREET OR PRINCE'S SQUARE to seriously reconsider. They should be condemned. They are slums and the landlords completely without scruples.

evie 18/08/2023 at 5:45 pm

I have a small gravel patio 8' by 5' the gravel has been down for 7 years without problems but a new neighbour has moved in with a cat. The 6' boundary fence blew down and the previous owner replaced it with a 4' fence - he also did not put it on the boundary line so saved a couple of panels which should have gone behind a brick built out house (victorian property) I informed the new owner and said I did not mind at all if he drilled fence posts into the back of my shed to erect a fence which would give us both privacy and because i knew he had a cat which i thought may become a problem. The neighbour has now fenced off his own garden level with my shed to create a nice clean private patio which is the other side of the fence to mine. This means his cat no longer bothers to go up his garden at all but instead takes the easy root across my shed roof and messes on my gravel pation. This is not the occasional poo which can be easily picked up it is every single motion this cat passes. When I was aaway for a week i returned to find my 8' by 6' space filled with sloppy cat faeces which i could not clean up other than to remove the stones and smothered in blue bottles I have now had to cover my patio with plastic sheeting Although I have hosed the near liquid faeces has just been washed on to the membrane so it looks like i will now have to pay to have my gravel taken away and replaced with slabs. when i tried to talk to my neighbour i.e. about giving the cat a litter tray or putting a gravel patch in his own garden (as the cat likes it so much) or even better erecting the boundary fence he just said "you cant stop a cat doing its business where it likes." so he has a nice clean patio next to mine which i cannot use as is a vile mess of faeces covered up by plastic because i cant risk any more which will happen as the cat comes across my shed roof heading to my gravel all the time. does he hqve any legal obligation to me seeing as my environment has been destroyed - i.e. to put up a boundary fence (which is his) preferably with cat spikes to stop the animal entering my garde. I am not talking about the occasional poo which can be picked up on a trowel it seems they feed the cat chuck it out and it comes directly into my garden to poo so the amount of mess is far beyond anything a roaming animal may do on occasional visit to a garden. He has the cat but I am getting ALL of the faeces every day.

Tizzy 28/07/2023 at 9:23 am

Property next door has been vacant for many years but the garden is severely comprising my beautiful well matured garden
The weeds and grass are higher than my fence which is being pushed into my garden, the weeds are self seeding into my garden and this property and garden has devaluted the small row of homes. Officer fro. The environmental health is not prepared to do anything
Is there a law that he can serve the owners who live 100 miles away
I hope someone can help

Tizzy

Angel 16/01/2023 at 1:44 am

I have the worst neighbours, from dogs barking, shouting swearing , harassing us , hate us insult us , to add more to it they throw rubbish in my front garden and they have been years throwing things in my back garden. And also now I have for a long while the smell is horrible from dogs they pee and Pooh and they don’t clean never had friends coming over wanted to have a smoke at back and my friend nearly vomit because of the horrendous stench . Don’t know what todo with this neighbours of HELL.

Pest 01/09/2022 at 10:27 pm

Our neighbors house stinks from air bricks and every night he throws urine in a 2litre bottle from top of his bedroom and the bottle smashes and we are hit with the worst most awful and nauseated smell of day old Urine. Have to close windows including the bathroom and have been retching every day. We cannot invite visitors over as we are afraid he will do this when we are sat outside or eating. We are prisoners in our own home and feel totally depressed at not being able to use and access our back garden and entertainment area! Please help we cannot go on like this !

Matthew Bredikhin 01/06/2022 at 10:30 pm

My neighbours live below me and constantly smoke on the ground floor balcony which we can smell as soon as they light up only now they smoke weed and this smell not only comes in our windows but I have to walk past there front door and it stinks out the whole entrance it is so obviously coming from there apartment they are very inconsiderate and park often blocking the path from the car park entrance doorway

Na 20/08/2021 at 1:02 pm

I live in a massionett ground floor 17 years mortgaged the property above is private landlord there has been several tenants in property with minor issues but this last tenant is persistently dispersing rubbish from her balcony onto my extension roof and also breeding pigeons

Chelle 24/06/2021 at 9:18 pm

The woman in the flat above me tip her dirty water onto my lawn after cleaning the feces and urine off her balcony caused by her dog

Debs 04/06/2021 at 10:27 am

My next next neighbour has been a problem to myself and my husband over the years it’s been that bad he has a A.S.B.O constantly drill banging hamming till early hours of the morning it’s been hell living here, his house looks like nobody lives there the front and back garden looks is a dumping ground, his grass hasn’t been touch for over two year and the rubbish is dump every where I have reported to the council loads of times the gutting has fell of the wall and myself and my husband where sitting in our garden we could smell burning and he been cigarettes out on the outside window ledge council property He has daughter there 3 times week and she is 5 years and I have hard say to her dad That she would love to play in the garden it’s that bad there is just no chance she would go out the due to it’s a dump hole and health safety, we have spent a lot on your house and keep it lovely and spent a lot of money on having a new fence up if the grass starts coming though we will hit the roof we not made of money has we are private tenants, And I thought the laws have changed that if tenants don’t keep up with there maintaining there garden they get find £1000, I’m disabled and next door has made me and my husband life a misery and put us though hell is there any way you can help us with this problem, has I have documented every think and took photo too

Guitar Fan 25/04/2021 at 10:11 am

We live in a residential Bungalow in a row with Other Bungalows, we have lived there11 years,
A man moved next Door, and has put up over 100 ft of Pigeon lofts,down one side, of the boundary and another 20 ft loft along his garden, He is breeding Pigeons, and selling them, we are having an increase of Rats in our Garden, I have seen them, going into his garden, the Noice down our garden, is Horrendous
I have spoken to the other Neighbours they have a problem with Rats also, since this man has been living here
When he moved here, he didn’t even tell us what he was doing,
I’m not against Keeping Pigeons, and I would accepted the 20ft along the garden with racing Pigeons
But this is a money making Buisness for him, I have seen people back and fore collecting the Pigeons
Does this man need permission to do what he is doing

Marma 21/03/2021 at 10:13 am

My upstairs neighbours harass me by releasing gases/chemicals fumes into my flat deliberately and it is affecting my health. The police cannot deal with it as they said it us a civil case. The Landlord, a Housing Co-Operative, cannot do anything as the tenant manipulates everything. Where can I go for help?
Thank you.

Leah 08/02/2021 at 3:48 pm

My neighbour runs a dog boarding business and also owns 9 small dogs of their own, she recently also had chickens.
To get rid of their waste she put a compost bin on the fence adjoining our property.
This has attracted rats, they burrow under the fence and dig and kick out all of this waste into our garden, this includes all the dog poo, chicken poo and scraps of food.
We have politely informed them that this is happening, and have tried to sort the rats our side but they keep coming back. The neighbours refuse to do anything about it and don’t seem to care that I’m shovelling their dog poo and chicken poo from my garden. She isn’t the nicest of people and we just want a quiet life. As a dog boarding business is this not violating her licence? Any help would be appreciated.

D 31/01/2021 at 7:13 pm

I have upstairs neighbours who let there dog urinate on their balcony which is directly above my own balcony. The balcony has wooden slats as flooring and gaps between each slat which leaves space for the dogs urine and any other droppings. They clean this by throwing a bucket of water over it, which also comes down on to my balcony. Do I have grounds for a complaint over this? As this is my personal property which now I will fear to sit on through the thought of bacteria from the dogs excrement.

Kendo 29/01/2021 at 10:04 am

Hi can you help? A niebough feeds pigeons and they are increasingly becoming a problem for me they now come onto my roof and poo over the gable end onto the foot path and it’s becoming slippery.I’ve asked her to stop feeding them but she refused to stop can the environment health do anything, cheers ken

Jo 03/10/2020 at 2:40 pm

My neighbours have 7 acres but put the stables, huge manure pile, chickens and now a male goat, all along our boundary. We are their only neighbours, and the goat smell is awful, even worse than the enormous dung heap, preventing us using our garden or opening our bedroom window. Are there any remedies to this smell problem. The neighbours do not respond to any of our concerns.

Janet 23/09/2020 at 7:55 pm

Hi Sir/ Madam, I lived in a couched house and in front of my house got six parking spaces. I am very upset by my neighbour who lived in a couched house either opposite me. They owned a dog. They always let their dog pee on the parking lots few times a day and almost every day this incident happened. Our parking lots are nearly covered by the urinate of the dog. Today the neighbour’s daughter even let the dog poo (the dog got diarrhea) nearly in front of our door and besides our carport as well. She just poured a jug of water onto it and claimed that she had cleaned the floor. In fact me and my another neighbour did ever make a complaint to them, unfortunately they just ignored us and claimed that they got the right to do so. Today I did make a complaint and they still claimed that they didn’t do anything wrong. May I know what can I do to stop the matter goes further please? Because I think this is not right and will contaminated the environment. I would be glad if you could give me some advices please. Many thanks for you assistance! Best wishes,
Janet

Kirra 15/08/2020 at 12:48 am

At nights i feel a strong smell of gas which is used to ripen fruit during transportation. It comes from the neighbour's flat below. Do you think she wants to take my flat from me or my skin looking older?

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