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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what progress he has made on achieving (a) Good Chemical Status and (b) Good Ecological Status for waterways in Henley and Thame constituency.

The major waterbodies in the Henley & Thames constituency are the Thames (Wallingford to Caversham), Thames (Caversham to Cookham) and the Thame. These waterbodies do not achieve Good Ecological Status due to their Phosphate Status. All the other elements are at Good Status or above. The Environment Act (2021) puts obligations on water companies to reduce their Phosphorous loading from STWs by 80% using a 2020 base. This needs to be achieved by 2038. It is anticipated that once these improvements have been made, most waterbodies will be at or close to Good Status for Phosphate. Any additional reductions to get Phosphate to meet Good Status will need to be done with other sectors, particularly the agricultural sector.

The tributaries within the Thame catchment have various reasons for Not Achieving Good Status. During Asset Management Period 8 (which covers 2025-30), 8 Sewage Treatment Works (STW) overflows will be improved to meet Environment Act targets, and a further 7 will have storm overflow investigations, alongside Phosphorus reduction. It is expected that these measures will form part of the pathway to getting the waterbodies to Good Ecological Status.