§ Mr. Masonasked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make it his policy, when implementing part II of the Control of Pollution Act 1974, that no reduction in discharge consent standards will be allowed, that no deterioration in the quality of water will be permitted and that the maintenance of public health will continue to have the highest priority; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. GowRiver, estuary and coastal water quality has been improving in recent years but the general improvement masks some local deterioration. The Government's aim in implementing part II of the Control of Pollution Act is to preserve water quality where it is already of a high standard and to promote progressive improvement against stated quality objectives.
Population growth, new development and other factors may require variation of the consent standards to which individual effluent discharges must conform. But all applications for such variations are assessed for consistency with this aim.