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Groundwater (England and Wales) Regulations 2009

I thank the Minister for introducing the regulations and going through them. I think that he shares my determination to use this brief debate to expand on the Government’s reasons for their introduction. We on these Benches appreciate and understand that groundwater is an important resource. Its contamination is potentially very dangerous to human health, aquatic life, plant life and animal life. Damage to it is very difficult and costly to remedy. I must declare my interest as a farmer and grower and start by asking what impact the regulations might have on livestock farmers, particularly the aspect of diffuse pollution, which may cover muck-spreading and slurry. My second interest is as someone living in the countryside, far away from mains sewerage and dependent on septic tank drainage. I am not alone, of course. How many dwellings in England and Wales have domestic septic tanks and how many have other types of domestic sewage treatment, similarly not connected to the mains sewerage? I am minded to think that the regulations would include mini-schemes covering small hamlets, clusters of houses and rural businesses, using schemes such as I have at home, a Clargester system for the pack house premises. Almost all those systems are linked to soakaways, which would see them included. Why was the current exemption limit for domestic discharge set at two cubic metres per day? Does the new European groundwater directive specifically ban such discharges and remove the previous exemption, or is that the Government’s interpretation? The major consequence of the regulations is that that exemption will be removed in due course. What is the current extent of groundwater pollution from domestic septic tanks discharging less than two cubic metres per day? Can that be characterised by location, frequency or the type of equipment used? What is the level of resultant damage? I know that those are detailed questions, but they are of great interest to the large number of people who may well find themselves involved. Does the Minister believe that any domestic sewage installations currently in use will be rendered unsuitable by the implementation of these new regulations? After all, some may be of proper interest to English Heritage. How many septic tanks or sewage plants will have to be replaced? What are the costs involved and who is picking up the bill? The Environment Agency—I refer here to a Written Answer given by the noble Lord, Lord Tunnicliffe, to a Question I tabled on 17 September—has 20,000 discharge permits or input permits and groundwater extraction authorisations. How many permits is it estimated will be sought by the owners of domestic sewage systems when they are included, as now they will be? How will the agency ensure that householders in isolated dwellings that may require a permit will be given the information they need to make their decision? I note that a web-based system of registration is proposed, but what percentage of the households affected have access to the web? On what grounds will the Environment Agency be able to refuse to issue a permit to the owner of a domestic sewage system, and what will be the probable charge for a permit to use a septic tank? Will householders who pay to have septic tanks emptied need a permit each time? Will the web-based registration scheme for discharges from isolated dwellings be a record of all discharges or just a record of septic tank owners? How does the Environment Agency discover that someone is discharging less than two cubic metres of effluent daily and how is it traced to its source? What are the agency’s costs for enforcing this legislation? We have the impact assessment, but has an independent evaluation been made of the cost burden that it will bear for bringing in daily discharges of less than two cubic metres from isolated dwellings? The impact assessment sought information on which groundwater policy would be reviewed to establish actual costs and benefit. It would be interesting to know whether this is going to be forthcoming, and if so, how frequently. I know that the Government propose to make all this part of a regular river basin management process, and while the long-promised floods and water management Bill—I hope that we will see it in the forthcoming Queen’s Speech—will undoubtedly consider this aspect, the draft Bill makes no reference to these regulations. Taken as it stands, these regulations will have a huge effect and generate potentially considerable costs for UK householders and businesses alike. The Explanatory Memorandum talks of a light touch in their implementation, but I note that the punishment for failing to comply with them is a fine of up to £50,000 or up to 12 months in prison for those who find themselves inadvertently caught within their scope after 1 January 2012, so no light touch there. Is this really a like-for-like interpretation of EU water regulations? I know from my French experience that my soakaway system has been examined and approved by the local authority. Has Defra discussed with other European countries how they are handling this directive? I make no apology for the highly interrogative nature of my contribution. We have a duty to ensure that the implications of these regulations have been thoroughly thought through by Her Majesty’s Government, and I look forward to the Minister’s response to my remarks.