PARLIAMENTARY WRITTEN QUESTION
Rivers: Pollution Control (19 January 2021)

The Government has set standards for phosphorus (P) in rivers, including the River Mersey, applied through the river basin management plans produced by the Environment Agency and its counterparts in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Since the mid-1990s, considerable progress has been made in reducing phosphorus in rivers. However, the standards are stringent and further measures are still needed. Phosphorus loadings to rivers from waste water treatment works in England have reduced by 67% since 1995 through investment in phosphorus reduction technology at treatment works and further reductions are planned up to 2027.

For agriculture, Farming Rules for Water and Catchment Sensitive Farming are helping. Defra is also commencing a 7-year transition from EU-based rules to a system in which farmers are paid to improve the environment through a new Environmental Land Management scheme, which includes nutrient management.