§ 34. Mr. HanleyTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what safeguards there are for the preservation of the reservoirs at Barn Elms, Barnes.
§ Mr. HowardSection 8 of the Water Act confers duties on the water companies in respect of all their land to further conservation, protect the landscape and public access and provide for recreation. These duties are enforceable by the Secretary of State who has approved a statutory code of practice, debated in the House in July, on conservation, access and recreation which gives guidance to companies on the performance of these duties and promotes good practice.
Section 152 of the Water Act further provides that water companies may not dispose of land in national parks, the Broads, areas of outstanding natural beauty or sites of special scientific interest without the consent of the Secretary of State or in accordance with a general authorisation; and that the Secretary of State may require that such land be first offered for sale to a suitable conservation body or that it be indefinitely protected by convenants or management agreements.
712WBarn Elms reservoir was notified as an SSSI in 1975 under the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949. 1 understand that the Nature Conservancy Council, which is responsible for this matter, is considering the representations it has received about its proposal announced in 1988 to denotify the reservoir as an SSSI. If Barn Elms reservoir remains an SSSI it will fall within the scope of the controls under section 152 relating to disposals of environmentally sensitive land.
The safeguards are in addition to the ordinary protection afforded by planning legislation.