Written question asked by Baroness Hayman of Ullock (Labour) on Thursday, 14 December 2023, in the House of Lords. It was due for an answer on Tuesday, 2 January 2024. It was answered by Lord Douglas-Miller (Conservative) on Wednesday, 3 January 2024 on behalf of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.
Lake Windermere: Pollution
- Question
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To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the conduct of the Environment Agency in relation to their investigation of recent pollution events in the Windermere area; and whether they have plans to revise guidance around the carrying out of such investigations.
- Answer
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We are working with the regulators to ensure they have the tools and resources they need to hold water companies to account. We have provided an extra £2.2 million per year to the EA specifically for water company enforcement activity. We have legislated to introduce unlimited penalties on water companies who breach their environmental permits and expand the range of offences to which penalties can be applied, giving the Environment Agency the tools they need to hold water companies to account.
In June 2023, the Environment Agency (EA) outlined that it would be transforming the way it regulates the sector, embedding a new approach that targets resource and interventions to uncover non-compliance and drive better performance from the water industry.
Due to the seriousness of the incident at Cunsey Beck, Windermere and the fact that a definitive source had not been identified, the EA asked the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) to review their response to the incident.
The EA recognise things should have been done better, that is why improvements have been made to water quality monitoring in the area, including installing sensors that monitor river quality in real time. Learning has been shared within the EA to inform future responses.
Actions that the EA are taking as the water industry regulator are set out in the annual water company performance report, published 12 July 2023.
Secondary information
- Type
- Written question
- Reference
- HL1212
- Session
- 2023-24
- Attachment
- Annual water company performance report
- Related items
- Subjects
- Environment Agency Pollution Sewage Lake Windermere
- Link
- View this Written question on www.parliament.uk
Librarians' tools
- Timestamp
- 2024-02-09 11:01:23 +0000
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