Water in the East Midlands

Sharon PalmerRegional Environment Planning ManagerEnvironment Agency

June 2012

This session will look at:

Water in the East Midlands

The Water Framework Directive and what it means for Local Authorities

Planning for water infrastructure, funding and PR14

The Water White Paper

What is our role?

Regulator

Advisor

EA - Operator

As a planning advisor

Specific Consultation Body

Strategic Environmental Assessment

Data and information and advice

Duty to Co-operate

Work with LAs as well as LEPs and LNPs

River TrentLPA’s

River Basin Scale

Duty to Cooperate?- River Basin Planning

- River Catchments

Derwent

Trent

Witham

Welland

Nene

The ‘Water Grid’

Rainfall in mm/year 1961-1990

Rivers

Groundwater

River Basin Planning

Specific licence changes

Indicative water availability during low water levels

River Trent

Rutland Water

Strategic links

Resilience

Major transfers and water resource schemes

Water Framework Directive

purpose – to establish an EU-wide framework for sustainable water management

objectives - to achieve ‘good status’ and ‘no deterioration’ for all water bodies (surface water and groundwater) by 2015, or a later agreed date, through River Basin Management Plans and Programmes of Measures.

The WFD was transposed into law in England and Wales by Regulations published in 2003.

The WFD encourages an holistic approach to water resource management and the sustainable use of water

WFD Objectives

new ecological standards for water environment new water environment objectives to protect the baseline (‘no deterioration’) and to improve water ecology (‘Good Ecological Status’), contributing to mitigating the effects of floods and droughtsevidence relating to ‘Tests of Soundness’ for spatial plans including Minerals & Waste Plans, and Penalties if there is a failure to deliver improvements to our water environment.

River Basin Management Plans

Deliver the requirements of the WFD.

Set out measures and objectives to ensure water bodies achieve and maintain good status.

They have implications for location of future development

Soon we’ll writing next plan - Working together consultation. You can find it at:

https://consult.environment-agency.gov.uk/portal/ho/wfd/working/together2012

Water Quality

• Current draft WFD compliance

• Need to aim for good quality and no deterioration

• Growth must not cause further deterioration

Poor Quality

Moderate Quality

Good/High Quality

Large Sewage Treatment Works

Improving the evidence

To improve water quality need to know why a water body is failing and then what we can do about it

During 2011/12 undertaking over 2000 investigations to improve our understanding

Know that we need to help Local Authorities access the latest information to help their decision making

Spatial scale of evidence – Duty to Co-operate?

Responsibilities of Local Authorities

“have regard to the River Basin Management Plan and any supplementary plans in exercising their functions”provide information and “such assistance as the Environment Agency may reasonably seek”general responsibility not to compromise UK compliance with EU DirectivesLocalism Act includes a power for Government to potentially require local authorities to make payments for financial sanctions for infraction of EU law if the authority has caused or contributed to that infraction

Overview of LA activities for contributing to WFD objectives

New Advice Note for Local Authorities

What is the European Water Framework Directive?Why is the water environment and the WFD important to local economies and communities?What are the roles for local authorities under the Water Framework Directive?How can local authorities contribute to WFD objectives?What further advice, information and support is available to local authorities from the Environment Agency and others?

Planning for Environmental Infrastructure

Essential for Local Authorities to understand the needs and plan for water infrastructure

Evidence is essential – water cycle studies can help to examine the impact of growth on water resources, water quality and flood risk

Investment needs to be in-tune with implementation of development plans and delivery of infrastructure

Funding Water Infrastructure

Water companies build, own and maintain the infrastructure for supplying our water and cleaning up our dirty water.Every five years a review is undertaken of the prices that the water companies can charge. This includes decisions on the services customers receive and the investment companies can carry out. Investment can include environmental improvements and accommodating new demand through growth. Water companies have to present a strong case for investment in upgrading or providing new assets for growth – they need to know what investment is needed where and when to plan for this infrastructure.

PR14

In November 2014 Ofwat will set the prices that water companies will charge their customers between 2015 and 2020 (PR14)Ofwat are the economic regulator for the water industry and their main role is to seek value for customers. EA, along with the Drinking Water Inspectorate, are responsible for environmental regulation of the water industry.PR14 will be a major piece of work for us as it determines how much money will be spent (including environmental improvements) by water companies over the next five years.

Role of the EA in PR14

The EAs role is to work with water companies and others to plan environmental improvements to better protect the water environment and secure wider benefits for society and the economy. One of the ways we do this is through the National Environment Programme (one element of PR14). The NEP sets out the statutory requirements that ensure that water companies meet European and national environmental standards related to water Water companies incorporate these requirements into their proposed business plans, which inform Ofwat's decision on prices

Role of Ofwat in PR14

In setting price limits Ofwat has a duty to make sure that eachcompany has enough money to finance its functions but no higherthan they need to be.

Price limits are determined by working out how much money eachcompany must collect from its customers to:

finance its day to day spending finance its capital investment programme reward outperformance in the previous five-year period continue to finance previous capital investment through the return the company earns on its regulatory capital value (RCV) pay tax it is liable for

Water White Paper

Water for Life describes a vision for future water management in which the water sector is resilient, in which water companies are more efficient and customer focused, and in which water is valued as the precious and finite resource it is. And it explains that we all have a part to play in the realisation of this vision…..

Water For Life – White Paper

introduce a reformed water abstraction regimere-affirm the catchment approachremove barriers to the greater trading of abstraction licences and bulk supplies of waterconsult on national standards and a planning approval system for sustainable drainagepackage of reforms to extend competition in the water sector

Sharon Palmer

Regional Environment Planning ManagerMidlands Region

Sharon.palmer@environment-agency.gov.uk