Asked by: Amanda Hack (Labour - North West Leicestershire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what comparative assessment his Department has made of the cost of (a) using sustainable urban drainage systems to manage rainwater on site of new developments and (b) allowing this rainwater to flow into sewers.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Comparative and impact assessments of the type requested are not currently available. This is primarily because the design of Sustainable drainage systems (SuDS) for any given development site will depend on a range of factors, including topography of the site, development size, development type, and rainfall rates.
SuDS provide a range of benefits. They mimic natural water flow and are designed to reduce the impact of rainfall by using features such as soakaways, grassed areas, permeable surfaces and wetlands. This reduces the pressure on our drainage infrastructure by reducing the quantity of water that ends up in the sewers and storm overflow discharges, mitigating flood risk and preventing pollution from untreated sewage ending up in our waterways.
SuDS also improve the quality of water entering our drainage infrastructure as they offer a natural filtration process, thereby removing pollutants. SuDS provide additional benefits, such as boosting biodiversity, improving local amenities, harvesting rainwater for reuse, heat island mitigation, improve air quality and even providing food growing opportunities.
Asked by: Andrew George (Liberal Democrat - St Ives)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will set targets in the updated Environmental Improvement Plan for the biodiversity recovery of (a) wetlands, (b) peat bogs (c) coastal strips, (d) grasslands, (e) woodlands and forests and (f) other significant habitats.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government concluded a rapid review of the existing Environmental Improvement Plan (EIP23) and published a statement of the rapid review’s key findings on 30 January 2025.
Later in 2025 we will publish a revised EIP, to protect and restore our natural environment with delivery information to help meet the ambitious Environment Act targets. It will be a clearer, prioritised plan for achieving environmental outcomes such as reducing waste across the economy, planting more trees, improving air quality and halting the decline in species.
We have legally binding targets have been carefully designed to enable biodiversity recovery. These are:
Asked by: Lee Dillon (Liberal Democrat - Newbury)
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 22 February 2025 to Question 32541 on the Chalk Stream Recovery Plan, whether any of the chalk stream projects in receipt of funding from the Government's Water Environment Improvement Fund in the 2024-25 financial year are located in the Newbury constituency.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
This financial year, there are over 45 chalk stream projects receiving funding from the Government's Water Environment Improvement Fund, each leveraging private investment and delivering on our commitment to ensure clean water for the future.
The River Shalbourne is a chalk stream within the Newbury constituency. In 2024/25 £80,000 of WEIF Capital funding was granted to Action for the River Kennet to deliver the River Shalbourne River and Floodplain Restoration project. This project restored a section of the river to more natural conditions by ‘remeandering’ (creating bends in the river) and reconnecting the river to the floodplain. These new wetlands will provide benefits including increased water storage, drought resilience and reduction of sediment and nutrient run-off. This work has addressed pressures which will support WFD (Water Framework Directive) element improvements (currently at Moderate WFD status).
Asked by: Lord Bishop of St Albans (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the introduction of a pair of beavers to the River Glaven in Norfolk in 2022 on (1) water pollution, and (2) flood risk.
Answered by Baroness Hayman of Ullock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
In 2021 Natural England issued a licence to the Norfolk Rivers Trust for a fenced beaver enclosure in the upper Glaven catchment. The application was supported by the University of East Anglia, including pre-release ecological, hydrological & social science reports, and proposals to monitor impacts after release. Natural England staff have visited the site on a number of occasions, and observed a series of extensive dams retaining water and sediment in the wooded enclosure. Natural England is also aware of the project’s recent research publication, demonstrating that the beaver wetlands significantly reduced nitrate and phosphate levels in the chalk stream flowing out of the site.
Asked by: Paul Kohler (Liberal Democrat - Wimbledon)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to improve the environmental health of Hogsmill River.
Answered by Emma Hardy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Environment Agency (EA) continues to support volunteers and Citizen Scientists in monitoring water quality across the Hogsmill, focussing on known pollution hotspots. Collaboration efforts have identified misconnecting sewage outfalls causing pollution, which Thames Water have rectified.
As part of the Water Company Price Review (PR19), Thames Water are committed to deliver a river restoration scheme at Kingsmeadow by 2027. There is also a partnership investigation to assess the impacts of groundwater abstraction on natural flows. The river restoration arising from these studies are scheduled for completion in March 2030.
Thames Water are required under PR24 to increase the size of the storm tanks at Hogsmill Sewage Treatment Works to 4 times the current volume. This will reduce the number and duration of storm sewage spills.
River Restoration is supported by the Water Environment Improvement Fund (WEIF). This year the funding has supported:
A recent Enforcement Undertaking (£150,000) for a pollution incident in 2020 required Thames Water to improve the Bonesgate.
The EA is committed to undertake a larger programme of wastewater asset inspections. It will have inspected 4,000 assets in England by the end of March 2025, up from 1389 the previous year, moving towards 11,500 a year by March 2027. This work will see significant improvements to water quality.
Asked by: Adam Jogee (Labour - Newcastle-under-Lyme)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many Ramsar sites have had their ecological character threatened in each of the last 14 years.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
In line with Article 3.2 of the Convention on Wetlands of International Importance (the Ramsar Convention), Contracting Parties are committed to monitor their Ramsar Sites and inform the Secretariat whenever the ecological character of a site has changed, is changing, or is likely to change as a result of human interference.
Over the last 14 years, 9 cases have been opened for UK Ramsar Sites under Article 3.2. Following actions to manage these changes or risks of change, the majority have been closed. Three cases remain open with regards to the following sites:
Work is ongoing to address and close these cases.
Asked by: Adam Jogee (Labour - Newcastle-under-Lyme)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department plans to mark World Wetlands Day in 2025.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The theme for World Wetlands Day 2025 is ‘Protecting Wetlands for Our Common Future’ and Defra plans to mark World Wetlands Day. In 2021 the UK co-sponsored the United Nations Resolution to designate 2 February as World Wetlands Day and we have since undertaken activities or supported other organisations in their activities to celebrate wetlands where appropriate. World Wetlands Day is an important opportunity to reflect on the value of wetlands in supporting biodiversity and delivering other public benefits.
This Government is committed to delivering our legally binding biodiversity targets, including to halt the decline in species abundance by 2030 and to restore or create more than 500,000 hectares of wildlife-rich habitat by 2042. Wetlands will be vital in achieving these.
Asked by: Claire Young (Liberal Democrat - Thornbury and Yate)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether he has had discussions with Cabinet colleagues on giving GB Energy a nature recovery duty.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Great British Energy will be operationally independent and will deliver in line with a statement of strategic priorities. Its projects will be subject to all relevant environmental legislation, which the Secretary of State regularly engages cabinet colleagues on. This includes the Planning and Infrastructure Bill which aims to accelerate infrastructure delivery, while protecting nature, to achieve clean power by 2030.
Government wants improved outcomes for our environment. We are committed to protecting 30% of land and sea for nature by 2030, halting biodiversity decline by 2030, and expanding nature-rich habitats such as wetlands, peat bogs, and forests.
Asked by: Mark Garnier (Conservative - Wyre Forest)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department plans to take to restore the condition of groundwater-dependent wetlands to achieve Local Nature Recovery Targets in Worcester.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Recovering nature is a key priority for this Government and wetland habitats are an important component of that.
Under the Restoring Sustainable Abstraction Programme, the impact of Public Water Supply groundwater abstraction on river flows and wetlands has been investigated in a number of areas across Worcestershire. Through this programme the Environment Agency have worked with Severn Trent Water to look at their impact on water levels and flow and have taken steps to address this. Natural England are also working closely with the Environment Agency and Severn Trent on the Water Industry National Environment Programme to deliver improvements to protected sites across Worcestershire.
Identifying priorities for nature is a key objective of Local Nature Recovery Strategies. Defra looks forward to seeing the finished Worcestershire Local Nature Recovery Strategy which is being prepared by Worcestershire County Council as the responsible authority.
Asked by: Anna Sabine (Liberal Democrat - Frome and East Somerset)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to help protect peatlands in Somerset.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
In our manifesto we said that we will expand nature-rich habitats such as wetlands and peat bogs.
In Somerset we are restoring and improving our peatlands through a number of projects, including the Nature for Climate Peatland Grant Scheme, Landscape Recovery, and the Paludiculture Exploration Fund.