Nuisance Update

The law nowadays has several weapons in its armoury to deal with an occupier of land whose activities interfere with his neighbour's use and enjoyment of his own land. Such interference generally results from excessive smoke, dust or noise or noxious smells. More unusually, neighbours have, over the years, fallen out over alleged interferences as diverse as power lines, television reception and brothels.

Whilst historically such matters have fallen squarely within the scope of public or private nuisance, as a matter of practicality, many "victims" of such interference are finding it easier, and considerably cheaper, to invoke the law of statutory nuisance in order to seek to curtail the behaviour of which complaint is made. This statutory regulation is centred upon section 79(1) of the Environmental Protection Act 1990, which sets out a list of activities capable of being regarded as a statutory nuisance which, along with the prosaic types referred to above, also includes animals, insects and artificial light which are "prejudicial...