§ 19. Mr. MichaelTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what progress he has made on fulfilling undertakings made at the North sea conference regarding treatment of sewerage prior to discharge into the sea.
§ Mr. MacleanThe United Kingdom will be fulfilling the North sea conference commitments through complying with the 1991 EC Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive. This requires the provision of sewage treatment at dates between 1998 and 2005. The Department, the National Rivers Authority and the water industry have for 18 months been working together very closely on the action needed to implement the directive.