§ Mr. BakerTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions how many discharge consents for fish farms have been issued by(a) the Scottish Environment Protection Agency and b) the Environment Agency under the Control of Pollution Act 1974: and on what date each (i) was issued and (ii) is due to expire. [149202]
Mr. Robert Ainsworth[holding answer 5 February 2001]: No discharge consents for fish farms have been issued by the Environment Agency under the Control of Pollution Act 1974. The Environment Act 1995 established the Environment Agency as the regulatory body responsible, among other tasks, for the issuing of water pollution discharge consents. The legislation in force at the tine of the Environment Agencys establishment was the Water Resources Act 1991, and it is under this legislation that the Environment Agency has issued discharge consents for fish farms. Information about how many discharge consents for fish farms have been issued by the Environment Agency is not held centrally and I will write to the hon. Member with this information as soon as it is available. The information that the hon. Member asks for in relation to the Scottish Environment Protection Agency is now a devolved matter for the Scottish Executive.