§ Mr. GardinerTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent assessment she has made of the causes of misconnections to surface water sewers. [135129]
386W
§ Mr. MorleyUnder section 106 of the Water Industry Act 1991, anyone wishing to make a connection to a public sewer must notify the relevant sewerage undertaker. If a sewerage undertaker is not informed of a proposal to connect, and a connection is subsequently made, the undertaker can, under section 109 of the Water Industry Act 1991, close the communication and recover any reasonable costs incurred.
Assessments of the causes of unlawful connections to public sewers are a matter for sewerage undertakers, on a case by case basis.
§ Mr. GardinerTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of the number of misconnections to surface water sewers and the environmental impact this has had in the last five years. [135130]
§ Mr. MorleyUnder section 106 of the Water Industry Act 1991, anyone wishing to make a connection to a public sewer must notify the relevant sewerage undertaker. If a sewerage undertaker is not informed of a proposal to connect, and a connection is subsequently made, the undertaker can, under section 109 of the Water Industry Act 1991, close the connection and recover any reasonable costs incurred.
Assessments of the numbers of unlawful connections to public sewers are a matter for sewerage undertakers.
The Environment Agency's role is to grant consents for discharges from sewers and to monitor pollution incidents. Where pollution from sewers is detected, the Agency can take action either against the sewerage undertaker or in co-operation with the undertaker against an illegal discharger to the sewer as appropriate. Normally the Agency would expect the sewerage undertaker to take appropriate enforcement action using its powers under the Water Industry Act 1991. The environmental impacts of unlawful connections to public sewers are a matter for the Agency.