The Environment Act underlines the UK Government’s commitment to tackling climate change and protecting and restoring our natural environment. It will ensure we deliver the most ambitious environmental programme of any country - transforming how we protect our natural environment, make better use of our resources and clean up our air and water.
Nationally
When in Government we made several steps to protect our natural environment and make better use of our resources. Including the 2024 water company expansion, the expanded storm overflows discharge reduction plan, the environmental penalties extended, and the publication of Governments water plan, to name a few.
Water Company Inspection Expansion
The water company inspection expansion in 2024 aimed to scale up to 10,000 health checks on the water network. This target has now been hit and every water company in England will expect their water treatment sites to be regularly inspected by the Environment Agency. This was driven by a need to crack down on their totally unacceptable behaviour and unlawful actions. The number of unannounced inspections has also risen. This has enabled the Environmental Agency to conduct more in-depth audits, getting to the root cause of incidents, and reduces reliance on self-monitoring.
The Environmental Agency has expanded its specialised workforce, including more data specialists making better use of analytical technology. The Environment Agency is currently conducting the largest-ever criminal investigation into potential widespread non-compliance by water and sewerage companies at thousands of sewage treatment works. There are currently nearly 100 active criminal probes underway targeting illegal sewage leaks and poorly maintained treatment facilities. Since 2015 the regulator has secured over 70 successful prosecutions against water companies. This has resulted in more than £158 million in cumulative fines.
Expanded Storm Overflows Discharge Reduction Plan
On Friday 15 September 2023, the High Court ruled in favour of the Conservative government’s Storm Overflows Discharge Reduction Plan, following challenges brought by WildFish and others. All claims were dismissed, meaning the government won on all grounds considered by the High Court. The judgment supported the position that the targets under the Conservative Government’s Plan goes substantially further than existing legislation to tackle the use of storm overflows. I strongly welcomed the High Court’s decision.
That is why the government published an expanded Storm Overflows Discharge Reduction Plan;
- This extends the requirements of the Plan to all storm overflows in England by including all coastal and estuarine storm overflows.
- It clarifies the extent of each target and storm overflows which are prioritised for early action.
- It adds Marine Protected Areas and Shellfish Water Protected Areas to the sites which are prioritised for early action.
- It introduces a commitment on the Government to explore the development of an ecological standard for estuarine waters.
Environmental Penalties Extended
During the last Conservative government, we made substantial improvements in environmental penalties, including regulatory updates and substantial fines. The Environmental Agency recorded 168 prosecution cases covering environmental offences in England. 98 of the cases resulted in criminal fines and totalled approximately £3.8 million.
Locally
I have continually lobbied for sustainable drainage systems across Castle Point and Canvey Island. Recent local housing development proposals have threatened our drainage systems and create a higher chance of flooding.
Castle Point Borough Council have proposed an extra 6,196 homes to be built across Castle Point; Labour is pushing for this number to increase to 11,662. I have recently attended the Local Plan hearing to raise these issues to the council and push for more suitable developments across Castle Point.
Canvey Island is very low lying, its surface water system depends on a system of drains, dykes, culverts, storage areas, tidal outfalls and pumps. It has also been stated that Canvey Island needs additional green storage space for surface water, not less. These future developments will limit the amount of green storage space and directly increase the chance of flooding.
I will continue to lobby against such developments and protect the drainage systems in Castle Point.