Asked by: Baroness Hayman of Ullock (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Douglas-Miller on 3 January (HL1212), what was the nature of the “learning” undertaken by and shared within the Environment Agency following its response to the pollution incident at Cunsey Beck, Windermere.
Answered by Lord Douglas-Miller
There was informative and useful advice in the Scottish Environment Protection Agency report. The specific improvements that the Environment Agency in Cumbria and Lancashire have looked to put in place when dealing with significant pollution incidents are:
The above is in addition to an increased focus on the Environment Agency’s response to incidents affecting water quality. In March 2023, the Environment Agency launched a Regulatory Plan which sets out key actions for Windermere, placing regulation at the heart of its work to improve the water environment. These actions include monitoring trends and pollution hotspots, targeting efforts on reducing pollution sources and reviewing findings on a regular basis.
The Environment Agency is also leading the Love Windermere partnership, a long-term initiative which brings together organisations committed to developing a science-based plan for the environmental protection of this iconic lake.
Asked by: Baroness Hayman of Ullock (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether, in the light of media reports regarding United Utilities and its interactions with the Environment Agency, they have confidence in the integrity of the current process for registering water pollution events.
Answered by Lord Douglas-Miller
The Government is clear that the volume of sewage being discharged into our waters in unacceptable. That is why our Plan for Water sets out more investment, stronger regulation, and tougher enforcement to tackle pollution and clean up our water.
Alongside this, our Storm Overflows Discharge Reduction Plan (copy attached) sets clear and specific targets for water companies, regulators and the Government, to work towards the long-term ambition of eliminating ecological harm from storm overflows.
We have increased the number of storm overflows monitored across the network: in 2010 only 7% were monitored, and now 100% are being monitored.
Additionally, we have legislated to introduce unlimited penalties on water companies who breach their environmental permits and expand the range of offences to which penalties can be applied, giving the Environment Agency the tools, they need to hold water companies to account.
Since autumn 2017, the Environment Agency has concluded two successful criminal prosecutions of United Utilities and accepted 10 Enforcement Undertakings, requiring the company to pay over £2 million to environmental charities.
Asked by: Baroness Hayman of Ullock (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the conduct of the Environment Agency in relation to their investigation of recent pollution events in the Windermere area; and whether they have plans to revise guidance around the carrying out of such investigations.
Answered by Lord Douglas-Miller
We are working with the regulators to ensure they have the tools and resources they need to hold water companies to account. We have provided an extra £2.2 million per year to the EA specifically for water company enforcement activity. We have legislated to introduce unlimited penalties on water companies who breach their environmental permits and expand the range of offences to which penalties can be applied, giving the Environment Agency the tools they need to hold water companies to account.
In June 2023, the Environment Agency (EA) outlined that it would be transforming the way it regulates the sector, embedding a new approach that targets resource and interventions to uncover non-compliance and drive better performance from the water industry.
Due to the seriousness of the incident at Cunsey Beck, Windermere and the fact that a definitive source had not been identified, the EA asked the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) to review their response to the incident.
The EA recognise things should have been done better, that is why improvements have been made to water quality monitoring in the area, including installing sensors that monitor river quality in real time. Learning has been shared within the EA to inform future responses.
Actions that the EA are taking as the water industry regulator are set out in the annual water company performance report, published 12 July 2023.
Asked by: Baroness Hayman of Ullock (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they collect data on the number of (1) garden centres, and (2) other stockists of horticultural products that have removed peat-containing products from sale; and if so, whether they will publish that data.
Answered by Lord Benyon - Lord Chamberlain (HM Household)
Defra supports the compilation of an industry annual report which tracks the use of peat in growing media. The 2022 report showed that compared with 2020 peat use had fallen by almost 60% and that in retail by almost 70%. We acknowledge the significant progress made in the reducing the quantity of peat used in horticulture. The Government remains committed to legislating to phase out the use of peat as soon as parliamentary time allows.
Asked by: Baroness Hayman of Ullock (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have plans (1) to bring forward their proposed ban on the sale of all peat-containing products, or (2) revise the list of items exempted from the ban until 2030.
Answered by Lord Benyon - Lord Chamberlain (HM Household)
In August 2022 we announced that we would ban the sale of peat for use in amateur gardening; we remain committed to this and plan to legislate as soon as parliamentary time allows. It remains our policy that we intend to legislate to restrict, and ultimately ban, the sale of peat and peat containing products. Our proposals, announced in March this year, include technical exemptions up to 2030. We are continuing to hold discussions with the horticulture sector on possible technical exemptions for the continued use of peat in the professional sector up to 2030, and for conservation purposes thereafter.
Asked by: Baroness Hayman of Ullock (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of reports that the Drinking Water Inspectorate found that more than 11,000 samples had tested positive for perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances in 2022.
Answered by Lord Benyon - Lord Chamberlain (HM Household)
Although detected in a tiny number of raw water samples, there is no evidence of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) concentrations above the 0.1 µg/l guideline value in drinking water supplies. The Government is aware of the 3.8% of water samples that tested positive for PFAS in 2022. The Drinking Water Inspectorate (DWI) has assessed these results and provided further direction to companies to develop appropriate and focused strategies to protect drinking water supplies going forward. Work is continuing across Government, which the DWI is involved in, to help us assess levels of PFAS occurring in the environment, their sources and potential risks to safeguard current high drinking water quality and ensure our regulations remain fit for purpose.
Asked by: Baroness Hayman of Ullock (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government why their response to the 2022 consultation on improved food waste reporting by large food businesses in England has been withdrawn, and when they expect to publish a new response.
Answered by Lord Benyon - Lord Chamberlain (HM Household)
We intend to gather further evidence and re-consider all the options using the latest available data in order to retake the decision in the next four to six months.
Asked by: Baroness Hayman of Ullock (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government how they envisage the work of Ofwat will contribute to the revised Growth Duty, which was announced alongside the Autumn Statement.
Answered by Lord Benyon - Lord Chamberlain (HM Household)
Ofwat lead the independent price review process to determine investment plans for water companies from 2025 to 2030, with proposed business plans currently containing a planned £96 billion of investment between 2025 and 2030.
Ofwat are now in the process of scrutinising these plans to ensure they meet the targets for environmental improvements and other obligations, without unduly impacting customers’ bills. Once the Growth Duty requirements come into force on 6 April 2024, Ofwat will also need to consider the promotion of economic growth throughout this scrutiny process.
Asked by: Baroness Hayman of Ullock (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they envisage any conflicts arising between the statutory duties of Ofwat and the revised Growth Duty, which was announced alongside the Autumn Statement; and if so, which duties should be prioritised.
Answered by Lord Benyon - Lord Chamberlain (HM Household)
As an independent regulator, Ofwat are well placed to balance their own decision making on statutory duties. This will include striking the right balance between competing pressures or duties, informed by an understanding of what approach might best support sustainable growth.
There may be instances where a regulator has considered growth and reached a view that other duties or objectives may take precedence. To support this, the proposed updated guidance for the Growth Duty assists regulators in considering the importance of economic factors and how to fulfil the Growth Duty.
Asked by: Baroness Hayman of Ullock (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government, following reports that 96 per cent of respondents to their 2021 Call for Evidence on the fur trade strongly agreed that it is wrong for animals to be killed for fur, what plans they have to bring forward legislation to ban the (1) import, and (2) sale, of fur.
Answered by Lord Benyon - Lord Chamberlain (HM Household)
We are continuing to build our evidence base on the fur sector, which will be used to inform any future action on the fur trade. This includes commissioning the Animal Welfare Committee to explore current responsible sourcing practices in the fur industry. Any future measures would be subject to consultation.