Consultation on Draft Statutory Instrument to amend provisions of the Water Resources Act 1991 for Water Protection Zones, and related Draft Statutory Guidance for the Environment Agency

Telephone: 020 7238 6635

22 December 2008

Dear Consultee

Consultation on Draft Statutory Instrument to amend provisions of the Water Resources Act 1991 for Water Protection Zones, and related Draft Statutory Guidance for the Environment Agency

1. I am writing to invite your views on the attached consultation document. This follows on from the consultation that Defra undertook in 2007-08 on policy options to deal with diffuse water pollution. The Government response to the findings of that consultation was to proceed with a balanced package of measures consisting of a Scheme (The England Catchment Sensitive Farming Delivery Initiative), advice (delivered by a network of Catchment Sensitive Farming Officers and external contractors) and regulation in the form of Water Protection Zones (WPZs). The policy response to that consultation is available at www.defra.gov.uk/farm/environment/water/csf/pdf/diffuse-consult-govresponse.pdf.

2. This consultation is solely concerned with the WPZ aspect, and we would be grateful for your comments on the proposed legislative changes to the Water Resources Act 199. These are intended to allow WPZs to be used more flexibly and with a view to being used with the River Basin Management Plans that are required under the Water Framework Directive. We would also like your comments on the attached draft Statutory guidance to the Environment Agency, which details the process required before a WPZ can be designated.

3. This consultation also follows on from the joint Defra/WAG consultation in February 2007 on "Mechanisms to Deliver Water Framework Directive Requirements on Hydro-morphology" and the associated October 2007 Government response. This process identified a number of gaps in the legal controls available to prevent damage to, or restore the hydromorphology (physical structure and flow conditions) of, water bodies, where this is necessary to achieve WFD objectives. Ministers undertook to consider whether to develop additional controls to remedy this and to consult on any proposals.

4. The following documents may be found on Defra's website: www.defra.gov.uk/corporate/consult/water-protection-zones/index.htm

  • Consultation document on Draft Statutory Instrument to amend provisions of the Water Resources Act 1991 for Water Protection Zones, and related Draft Statutory Guidance for the Environment Agency. This also includes a Q&A.
  • A copy of this letter
  • A list of consultees to whom this letter and consultation document have been sent.

5. We welcome your views and comments on the proposals. If you wish to obtain a copy of this consultation. Please contact Steven O'Leary at the contact shown below.

Responses

6. Please send responses to either:
Steven O'Leary
Water Protection Zones and CSF Delivery Initiative Project Officer
Tel: 0207 238 6635
Fax: 0207 238 5106
email: steven.o'leary@defra.gsi.gov.uk

Or email: WPZ.consultation@defra.gsi.gov.uk

7. Responses should be received by 31 March 2009.

Consultation Criteria

8. This consultation is in line with the Code of practice on Consultations. This can be found at  www.berr.gov.uk/bre/

9. When this consultation ends, we intend to put a copy of the responses in the Defra library at Ergon House, London. This is so that the public can see them. Also, members of the public may ask for a copy of responses under freedom of information legislation.

10. If you do not want your response - including your name, contact details and any other personal information - to be publicly available, please say so clearly in writing when you send your response to the consultation. Please note, if your computer automatically includes a confidentiality disclaimer, that won't count as a confidentiality request.

11. Please explain why you need to keep details confidential.  We will take your reasons into account if someone asks for this information under freedom of information legislation. But, because of the law, we cannot promise that we will always be able to keep those details confidential. 

12. We will summarise all responses and place this summary on our website at www.defra.gov.uk/resources/consultation/index.htm . This summary will include a list of names of organisations that responded but not people’s personal names, addresses or other contact details.

To see consultation responses and summaries, please contact the library at:
Defra
Information Resource Centre
Lower Ground Floor
Ergon House
17 Smith Square
London
SW1P 3JR

Telephone: 020 7238 6575
Email:  defra.library@defra.gsi.gov.uk

Please give the library 24 hours’ notice.  There is a charge for photocopying and postage.

13. If you have any comments or complaints about the consultation process, please address them to Marjorie Addo, Defra’s Consultation Co-ordinator, Area 7C Nobel House,17 Smith Square, London SW1P 3JR, or email consultation.coordinator@defra.gsi.gov.uk.

14. Thank you for your help in this matter. If you have any queries please contact us as above.

Yours faithfully,

Steven O’Leary
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Page published: 22 December 2008