Plans call for reducing nutrient contamination and assisting the ecosystem.
The Government today unveiled new initiatives to help conserve England’s priceless protected sites by reducing nutrient pollution and enabling the development of sustainable new homes for families across the nation (Wednesday 20 July).
For freshwater wetlands and estuaries that house wetland birds, fish, and insects, nutrient pollution is a pressing issue.
Increased nutrient levels, such as those of nitrogen and phosphorus, can hasten the growth of some plants, upsetting natural cycles and wreaking havoc on wildlife.
Even though the government has made significant strides to address the issue, the decision made today would expedite development in problem areas while enabling homebuilding nationwide.
Due to high levels of nutrients in some English water catchments, complicated domestic law emanating from the EU, and burdensome case law, Local Planning Authorities can only accept a plan or project if they are confident it won’t negatively impact legally protected natural areas.
Natural England has advised a total of 74 Local Planning Authorities regarding the nutrient impacts of new plans and projects on protected sites where those protected sites are in unfavourable condition due to excess nutrients in accordance with its statutory role as an adviser on the natural environment.
Plans released by the government today include:
a new legal requirement for water corporations in England to modernise wastewater treatment facilities to the pinnacle of technological advancement by 2030 in “nutrient neutrality” areas.
By funding initiatives like the creation and expansion of wetlands and woods, Natural England has launched a new Nutrient Mitigation Scheme that benefits wildlife and increases public access to nature.
This will make it possible for local planning authorities to approve new buildings in regions that have nutrient pollution problems, allowing for the construction of sustainable new houses and guaranteeing that building may proceed.
The money to launch the programme will come from DLUHC and Defra.
By drastically decreasing pollution from already-existing homes in vulnerable locations, today’s steps will not only address the long-term problem of nutrient contamination.
The need to offer mitigation will be waived for developers that acquire “nutrient credits.”
The Nutrient Mitigation Scheme will be accredited by Natural England, allowing local planning authorities to approve developments that have obtained the required nutrient credits.
This would guarantee that developers have an efficient approach to reduce nutrient contamination, enabling planned building to proceed and resulting in the creation of new habitats across the nation.
These initiatives build on our comprehensive plan to significantly reduce water pollution, which includes proposed targets under the Environment Act to lessen the main sources of river pollution, a plan for the largest water company infrastructure project ever to lessen discharges from storm overflows, new funding for the Environment Agency to increase farm inspections to at least 4,000 inspections a year by 2023, and new farming initiatives that will reward farmers and land managers for good farming practises.
George Eustice, the environment secretary, said:
The policies we’ve unveiled today will ensure that communities get the additional homes they need while also defending England’s wildlife and sensitive habitats from the effects of nutrient pollution.
This is only a small portion of the ongoing government efforts to raise water quality around the nation, which also include addressing storm overflows and meeting the goals of our industry-leading Environment Act.
Greg Clark, the organization’s secretary, said:
It is crucial that the quality of our rivers, streams, and wetlands is not harmed by the construction of new dwellings.
These regulations will guarantee that development can occur, but only in areas where real steps are being taken to safeguard our priceless aquatic environments.
Tony Juniper, chair of Natural England, stated:
Wading birds, insects, fish, and rare plants are just a few of the many wildlife species that call wetlands and estuaries home.
Many of these sensitive areas are being seriously harmed by pollution from excess nutrients, so taking strong, coordinated effort to safeguard them is essential if we are to fulfil our country’s recovery goals for nature.
The Nutrient Mitigation Scheme and the Duty on Water Companies represent important advancements that will help integrate the many strategies for improving water quality and result in a variety of other advantages.
They will give planning officials, developers, and water and land managers the resources they need to both build new residences and support the rivers and lakes that are essential for reviving the natural world and creating breathtaking locations for everyone to enjoy.
The Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill will be modified by the government to include the new legal obligation on water and sewerage corporations in England to improve specific wastewater plants.
For the sake of an assessment of habitat regulation, we want these advancements to be taken into account.
These improvements must be made in a way that addresses the primary nutrient(s) polluting protected wildlife areas.
For instance, adding metal salts to wastewater can enhance the effectiveness of treatment facilities when combined with wetlands and reedbeds.
To determine where these repairs could be accelerated and provided sooner, the government will, if possible, collaborate with water corporations.
In addition to the changes mandated by the new responsibility on businesses, our proposed Environment Act aim to address wastewater pollution across the nation will see improvements made elsewhere over a slightly longer timeline.
The Nutrient Mitigation Scheme, in collaboration with environmental organisations and other privately managed nutrient mitigation schemes, will establish new wetlands and woods.
It comes after DLUHC’s initial funding package for planning authorities totaling £100,000 (per catchment).
This federal programme will encourage the creation of new habitats that will’soak up’ or lessen the effects of nutrient contamination that cannot be avoided.
Access to nature for people will also rise because to these new or enlarged animal areas.
All developers will be eligible for the programme, although smaller builders who would be most impacted will receive preference.
If they so want, developers can also keep implementing their own mitigation plans.
Wherever they exist, commercial producers and markets for nutrient offsets will be supported by Natural England rather than being squeezed out.
The programme is scheduled to launch in the fall.
The government and Natural England will continue to provide all impacted areas with useful assistance in order to achieve nutrient neutrality criteria.
With the assistance of Defra, DLUHC, the Environment Agency, and Homes England, Natural England will implement the programme by establishing a “Accelerator Unit.”
By drastically lowering the cost of mitigation measures, this announcement will facilitate the delivery of the tens of thousands of homes currently in the planning system.
The mitigation plan will make it considerably simpler for developers to meet those standards.