Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his department has made of the potential impact on repeated disposal of antimicrobial toilet additives from motorhomes and caravans into campsite septic tanks.

Sewage discharges are regulated by the Environmental Permitting (England and Wales) Regulations 2016. These Regulations allow lower risk discharges to operate under statutory General Binding Rules, but any discharge which cannot comply with those rules can only be made in accordance with an Environmental Permit issued by the Environment Agency. When a permit application is processed, the potential risks to the receiving environment are considered and conditions to protect the environment are applied to any permit that is issued.

If the disposal of toilet waste containing additives compromises the treatment provided by a campsite septic tank then the discharge may cause pollution, and the operator of the septic tank could be subject to enforcement action by the Environment Agency.