Asked by: Oliver Heald (Conservative - North East Hertfordshire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what progress her Department has made on improving the quality of chalk rivers in (a) Hertfordshire and (b) England.
Answered by Rory Stewart
The Environment Agency is continuing its work with local water companies to improve the quality of rivers in Hertfordshire. In 2014 several watercourses showed improvements in water quality linked to a reduction in polluted surface water outfalls and improved processes at sewage works. Through local engagement with the agriculture sector, the Environment Agency is identifying opportunities to reduce agricultural run-off including fertilizers and pesticides.
Through its Restoring Sustainable Abstraction programme, the Environment Agency is also seeking to improve flows in chalk rivers in Hertfordshire. Affinity Water has committed £5 million and the Environment Agency is also committing significant funds to the project.
Across England, a programme of physical habitat restoration is under way on these rivers (including the 11 chalk river Sites of Special Scientific Interest that need restoration). Led jointly by Natural England and the Environment Agency, this programme involves a range of statutory and voluntary sector partners. Since 2011, some 70 kilometres of chalk stream have been improved.
Water company investment has also contributed to substantial reductions in phosphate pollution, to which chalk streams are particularly sensitive, and additional investment is proposed to secure further improvements.
The Environment Agency has changed 46 abstraction licences for ten chalk streams across England. These returned 9.4 million cubic metres year of water back to chalk streams and removed the risk of another 1.6 million cubic metres per year being taken. This is equivalent to the average annual domestic water use of 200,000 people, or the approximate population of Peterborough.
Asked by: Oliver Heald (Conservative - North East Hertfordshire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 4 December 2014 to Question 216668, how many of the marine protected areas in the waters of (a) the UK and (b) UK overseas territories are designated as no-take zones.
Answered by George Eustice
In English waters, three areas within Marine Protected Areas have regulations in place to prohibit all fishing activity. They are located within the Lundy Island, Flamborough Head and Morecombe Bay European Marine Sites. In addition there are numerous areas where fishing is highly regulated to conserve features for which Marine Protected Areas have been designated. There are other areas that may be closed to all fishing activities for a variety of other purposes, for example for the protection of wrecks and exclusion zones around offshore energy installations.
Issues relating to fishery closures in Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland are a matter for the respective administrations.
With regards to UK overseas territories, the British Indian Ocean Territory MPA is designated a no-take zone. The Maritime Zone of South Georgia & South Sandwich Islands is designated as an MPA, of which 20,000km² is a no-take zone.
Asked by: Oliver Heald (Conservative - North East Hertfordshire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what progress she has made on improving the cleanliness of Britain's chalk rivers.
Answered by Dan Rogerson
Chalk rivers are well represented in both the national and European designated site network, which aims to protect sites of high conservation value. Action is under way on the majority of these sites to address pressures such as physical modification, effluent, diffuse pollution and abstraction.
A strategic programme of physical habitat restoration is under way on these rivers (including the 11 chalk river Sites of Special Scientific Interest that need restoration). Led jointly by Natural England and the Environment Agency, it involves a range of statutory and voluntary sector partners. Some 70 kilometres of chalk stream have been improved since 2011.
Defra has provided funding to support these activities. A new catchment-based approach to support river basin management planning is strengthening local engagement and helping the Environment Agency to better understand and respond to pressures on the water environment.
Water companies are investing £3.4 billion between 2010 and 2015 to support the achievement of Water Framework Directive environmental objectives. This has contributed to substantial reductions in phosphate pollution, to which chalk streams are particularly sensitive, and additional investment is proposed to secure further improvements. Water companies are also engaged in research to overcome technical limitations on phosphorus reduction.
Changes have been made to 44 abstraction licences affecting chalk streams. The Water Act 2014 will enable the Environment Agency to make further progress in preventing unsustainable abstraction. The Government is also putting in place a balanced package of measures to further tackle agricultural pollution
The benefits of these actions are likely to take some time to be reflected in reported water body status because the environment can take a considerable time to recover once pressures have been reduced.
Asked by: Oliver Heald (Conservative - North East Hertfordshire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 1 December 2014 to Question 216087, which flora and fauna found in the the rivers Beane and Mimram he would expect to benefit from less abstraction from the rivers.
Answered by Dan Rogerson
The abstraction reductions, combined with the rehabilitation of the river habitat, should see a substantial improvement in the flora and fauna in these chalk streams.
It is not possible to link the return of species directly with the new flow regime. However, the Environment Agency can give examples of species it expects to see benefit as a result of reduced abstraction.
Generally, the Environment Agency expects fish such as brown trout and bullhead will benefit from reduced abstraction. It also expects macro-invertebrate species such as mayflies (example blue winged olive Serratella ignita), caddis flies (example freeliving caddis Rhyacophila dorsalis) and stoneflies (rolledwinged, nemourid stoneflies) and plant species such as water crowfoot (Ranunculus) will benefit. Reduced abstraction will also help clean the gravel bed of silt, which will improve fish spawning.
The Environment Agency, Affinity Water and local river groups are working together on a monitoring programme to further help understand how these ecological communities respond to and recover from reduced abstraction.
Asked by: Oliver Heald (Conservative - North East Hertfordshire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the global environmental significance of chalk rivers; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Dan Rogerson
There are 161 chalk rivers across England, representing some 85% of the world’s chalk river resource (other chalk rivers being found in northern France and New Zealand). The Government recognises the environmental and cultural importance of this rare river habitat, which is well represented in both the national and European designated site network in recognition of its particular importance in a European context.
Asked by: Oliver Heald (Conservative - North East Hertfordshire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to improve the quality of the rivers Beane and Mimram; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Dan Rogerson
The Rivers Beane and Mimram suffer from low flows and poor water quality due to urban drainage and rural run-off.
The Environment Agency has been working with Affinity Water with the result that by 2018, abstraction from the River Mimram at Fulling Mill Pumping Station will stop, and abstraction from the River Beane at Whitehall Pumping Station will be cut by 90%.
The Environment Agency is also working with Thames Water to rectify misconnected drains that affect the River Beane and to improve maintenance on its tributary, the Stevenage Brook. The Environment Agency is also working with landowners on the River Mimram to resolve bank erosion and reduce field run-off.
Actions being taken should substantially improve the quality and habitats of these valuable chalk streams.
Asked by: Oliver Heald (Conservative - North East Hertfordshire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the implications for her policies of the findings of the WWF-UK report, The state of England's chalk streams, published in November 2014; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Dan Rogerson
The Government recognises the environmental and cultural importance of this rare river habitat. We will study the WWF’s report and consider carefully any recommendations it contains.
Chalk rivers are well represented in both the national and European designated site network, which aims to protect sites of high conservation value. Action is underway on the majority of these sites to address pressures such as physical modification, effluent, diffuse pollution and abstraction.
A strategic programme of physical habitat restoration is underway on these rivers (including the 11 chalk river Sites of Special Scientific Interest that need restoration). Led jointly by Natural England and the Environment Agency, it involves a range of statutory and voluntary sector partners. Some 70 kilometres of chalk stream have been improved since 2011.
Defra has provided funding to support these activities. A new catchment based approach to support river basin management planning is strengthening local engagement and helping the Environment Agency to better understand and respond to pressures on the water environment.
Water companies are investing £3.4 billion between 2010 and 2015 to support the achievement of Water Framework Directive environmental objectives. This has contributed to substantial reductions in phosphate pollution, to which chalk streams are particularly sensitive, and additional investment is proposed to secure further improvements. Water companies are also engaged in research to overcome technical limitations on phosphorus reduction.
Changes have been made to 44 abstraction licences affecting chalk streams. The Water Act 2014 will enable the Environment Agency to make further progress in preventing unsustainable abstraction. The Government is also putting in place a balanced package of measures to further tackle agricultural pollution.
The benefits of these actions are likely to take some time to be reflected in reported water body status because the environment can take a considerable time to recover once pressures have been reduced.