§ Mr. Skinnerasked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement on the condition of the River Rother in North Derbyshire, and on the steps that are being taken to clean it up.
§ Mr. Denis HowellMy hon. Friend will know from Volume I of the "Report of a River Pollution Survey of England and Wales 1970," published in December 1971, that the River Rother was grossly polluted for most of its length. So far as I am aware, there has been no significant change in its condition. The Yorkshire Water Authority is responsible for the control of polluting discharges to the River Rother. I understand that it is in touch with the industrialists making the discharges which appear most troublesome, and that it is hopeful of securing some improvement of the condition in the river in the foreseeable future.