§ Lord Craigtonasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether each of the regional water authorities has undertaken to use the Conservation and Land Drainage Guidelines produced by the Water Space Amenity Commission in their river management work and general land drainage operations and to what extent the effectiveness of the guidelines is being monitored.
Earl FerrersSection 22 of the Water Act 1973, as amended by Section 48 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, places certain obligations on the regional water authorities with regard to conservation. The responsibility for meeting those obligations rests with each of the authorities. I understand that many of the authorities have drawn up their own procedures based on the guidelines published by the Water Space Amenity Commission.