DEPARTMENT FOR
ENVIRONMENT, FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS News Release (News Release ref :
38/08) issued by The Government News Network on 7 February 2008
Climate change
means that we will all have to value water more as we find a
fairer way of paying for it, Environment Secretary Hilary Benn,
said today as he launched the Government's water strategy for
England, Future Water.
Hilary Benn said:
"Securing and maintaining water supplies is vital to the
prosperity of the country and to the health of people and the
environment. In some areas, current supplies are already
unsustainable and this situation was exemplified by the drought in
South East England between 2004 and 2006.
"These pressures are going to get worse as the climate
changes, the economy grows, and population increases. Combined
with the need to reduce CO2 emissions from the water industry and
from our use of hot water in our homes, this means that we must
find ways of improving efficiency, and of reducing demand and wastage.
"No one approach will work for all areas, but we must find
ways of improving efficiency, and of reducing demand and wastage.
That's what this strategy will help deliver."
The Strategy's proposals include:
* The aim to reduce water usage to 120 litres per person per day
by 2030 from the current level of roughly 150 litres per person
per day, through a combination of efficient technology, metering
and tariffs.
* An independent review into water charging. In particular, this
will advise on the role of metering and charging in the future and
whether there is a need to move beyond the current system where
companies in seriously water stressed areas may introduce
mandatory metering where there is a clear case for doing so. Any
future changes would need to include measures, such as tariffs,
that help vulnerable households.
* New proposals to tackle surface water drainage. A consultation
is being launched today taking forward some of the key
recommendations from Sir Michael Pitt's lessons learned
report following the summer 2007 floods. The proposals include
introducing surface water management plans to co-ordinate
activity, clarifying responsibilities for sustainable drainage
systems, and reviewing the ability of new development to connect
surface water automatically into the public sewer.
* New proposals to reduce water pollution by tackling
contaminants at source. One early proposal is today's
publication of a consultation on controls on phosphate in domestic
laundry cleaning products, considering both voluntary and
regulatory control options. Excess phosphorus in water bodies
disturbs the ecological balance by stimulating plant growth.
Discussions with the cleaning products industry have indicated
that the phasing out of phosphate in domestic laundry cleaning
products would be feasible by the end of 2015.
* Action to deal with point sources of pollution (e.g. from
industrial processes and sewage treatment works) and use River
Basin Management Plans under the Water Framework Directive to
tackle direct pollution to water such as from agriculture and run
off from urban areas.
* Change to existing rules so that planning permission is not
required for paving front gardens provided porous materials are used.
Mr Benn said:
"The independent review will assess the effectiveness and
fairness of different methods of charging, including metering and
tariffs, and make recommendations. Our current system of charging,
based largely on the value of people's homes 35 years ago, is
archaic and rife with anomalies. We need a fairer system that
offers incentives to conserve water. In areas of serious water
stress it's pretty clear that this will mean near universal
metering before 2030. The review will consider how to protect
vulnerable groups, like those on low incomes and the elderly.
"Alongside looking at how we use and pay for water, we also
must look at how water affects us. Since accepting all 15 urgent
recommendations of the Pitt Review into the 2007 summer floods we
are already taking action to address a number of the key issues,
including seeking views from stakeholders on how the Environment
Agency might take on the strategic role for all forms of inland
flooding - including surface water."
Other points from the strategy include:
* Bringing water companies within the scope of the Carbon
Reduction Commitment scheme, which sets targets for industry to
reduce its emissions. The water industry has made a commitment to
a 20 per cent target for renewable energy by 2020 and will
research how it might better manage non-CO2 greenhouse gas
emissions from wastewater treatment.
* Progress being made on mapping surface water and groundwater
flooding. The Environment Agency is currently looking at modelling
approaches which could be used for these purposes. Government
committed to follow up on Sir Michael Pitt's recommendation
that we explore a long term approach to investment in flood and
erosion risk management and the Environment Agency is leading a
project looking at this.
* Defra will consult later this year on proposals to make the
abstraction licensing system more able to cope with the challenges
of climate change so that we can maintain a balance between demand
for essential supplies and protection of wildlife and aquatic
environments. In 2009 a National Policy Statement will be
published, setting out Government views on the need for major new
infrastructure such as new reservoirs.
* Continued support for farmers on Catchment Sensitive Farming.
Full details of this will be announced in due course.
* The launch of a public consultation on draft statutory Social
and Environmental Guidance to Ofwat, the independent economic
regulator of the water industry. In reflecting the policies set
out in Future Water, it is one of the means by which the
Strategy's priorities can begin to be delivered. The
consultation launched today alongside the Water Strategy will run
for 12 weeks, after which the guidance will be subject to
Parliamentary scrutiny.
NOTES TO EDITORS
1. Documents can be found at:
* Future Water: the Government's water strategy for England:
http://www.defra.gov.uk/environment/water/strategy/index.htm
* Improving surface water drainage: consultation to accompany
proposals set out in the Government's water strategy, Future
Water: http://www.defra.gov.uk/environ/fcd/policy/surfacewaterdrainage.htm
* Consultation on options for controls on phosphates in domestic
laundry cleaning products in England: http://www.defra.gov.uk/corporate/consult/phosphates/
* Consultation on draft statutory Social and Environmental
Guidance to the Water Services Regulation Authority (Ofwat): http://www.defra.gov.uk/corporate/consult/ofwat-guidance/
2. The water charging review will:
* assess the effectiveness and fairness of methods of charging,
given current trends in water metering;
* consider the effectiveness of different types of social and
block tariffs, following trials, paying particular attention to
how these can help vulnerable households;
* assess the appropriate pace of change to near universal
metering needed to ensure continuity of supply in areas of water
stress, taking into account the current projections of growth in
metering, the proposals brought forward in water resources
management plans, the fact that all new homes are metered, and the
importance of environmental protection;
* assess the cost of metering, including smart metering, taking
into account the full social cost of carbon, and the cost
effectiveness of different options; and
* recommend whether
legislation is needed on either charging or metering.
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