Waste Management (Hansard, 11 June 2003)

§ Mr. Battle
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what modifications to waste management licences have been(a) applied for and (b) authorised by the Environment Agency or its predecessor regulatory body in each year since 1990, broken down by waste site. [116331]

§ Mr. Meacher
The table below shows the number of modifications issued by the Environment Agency.
Modifications are not necessarily issued in the same year that the application is received.
water companies to provide specific treatment to reduce nitrates present in sewage at sewage treatment works which monitoring by the Environment Agency reveals as having an impact on associated water supply sources. These measures complement those taken under the Nitrates Directive to reduce the diffuse pollution of waters by nitrates arising from agricultural practices.
Funding of such sewage treatment is obtained through the five yearly Periodic Review of water company price limits.

§ Gregory Barker
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many nitrate-sensitive areas were designated in each year since 1997; and if she will make a statement. [117531]
885W

§ Alun Michael
There are 32 nitrate sensitive areas in England where voluntary, compensated agricultural measures were introduced, under the Nitrate Sensitive Areas Scheme, to reduce nitrate concentrations in sources of public drinking water. These were designated in 1994 and 1995. No new areas have been designated since then and the Scheme will close on 30 September 2003.
The EU Nitrates Directive requires all known areas of land draining into nitrate-polluted waters to be designated as nitrate vulnerable zones. In 1996, the Government designated 66 nitrate vulnerable zones covering eight per cent. of England's land area, and in October 2002, designated nitrate vulnerable zones covering an additional 47 per cent. of England's land area. This brings total coverage of England to around 55 per cent. Further details on the location of the nitrate vulnerable zones can be obtained from the Defra NVZ web pages (www.defra.gov.uk/environment/water/quality/nitrate).