4.—(1) In this Act "environmental protection" includes—

(a) the prevention, limitation, elimination, abatement or reduction of environmental pollution, and

(b) the preservation of the quality of the environment as a whole.

(2) In this Act "environmental pollution" means the direct or indirect introduction to an environmental medium, as a result of human activity, of substances, heat or noise which may be harmful to human health or the quality of the environment, result in damage to material property, or impair or interfere with amenities and other legitimate uses of the environment, and includes—

(a) "air pollution" for the purposes of the Air Pollution Act 1987,

(b) the condition of waters after the entry of polluting matter within the meaning of the Local Government (Water Pollution) Act 1977,

(c) in relation to waste, the holding, transport, recovery or disposal of waste in a manner which would, to a significant extent, endanger human health or harm the environment and, in particular—

(i)   create a risk to the atmosphere, waters, land, plants or animals,

(ii)   create a nuisance through noise, odours or litter, or

(iii) adversely affect the countryside or places of special interest,

(d) noise which is a nuisance, or would endanger human health or damage property or harm the environment.

(3) In this Act "environmental medium" includes the atmosphere, waters and land.

(4) In this Act "environmental quality standard" means the set of requirements which must be fulfilled at a given time by a given environment or environmental medium or any part thereof, as specified in any enactment or enactments, or in any act or acts adopted by an institution of the European Communities.]