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1641216

	registered interest
	date	02/06/2023
	answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	answering dept id	13
	answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	hansard heading	Flood Control: Somerset
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 23rd May 2023 to Question 185044 on Flood Control: Somerset, what recent discussions she has had with the Environment Agency about introducing further measures to protect (a) houses and (b) the road network in East Somerset from future flash flooding caused by high rainfall.
	tabling member constituency	Somerton and Frome
	tabling member printed	David Warburton
	uin	187255
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/06/2023 answer text <p>The significant rainfall event that occurred on 9 May in Somerset resulted in ‘flash flooding’ due to the intensity of rainfall that occurred in a very localised area, causing fluvial and surface water flooding.</p><p> </p><p>In England the Environment Agency (EA) has the strategic overview for flood risk and managing the risk from main rivers, reservoirs and the sea, and lead local flood authorities are responsible for local flood risk management, covering the risk of flooding from surface water, groundwater and ordinary watercourses.</p><p> </p><p>The Government is acting to drive down flood risk from every angle. In March 2020 we announced a record £5.2 billion investment over six years in flood and coastal erosion schemes to better protect communities across England. Around half of the schemes funded by the programme will be delivered by the EA and half by other risk management authorities, such as lead local flood authorities. Schemes within this investment programme in the local area include: property flood resilience measures to be installed at residential properties in Isle Brewers, Nunney and Frome; pump replacements at the Huish, Long Load, Midleney &amp; Westover, pumping stations; and safety repairs at West Moor Reservoir.</p><p> </p><p>Following the 2021 flooding in Chard and Ilminster, the EA in collaboration with Somerset lead local flood authority has secured funding to undertake a number of strategic flood risk studies to identify longer term steps to better manage flood risk in these areas. This work is due to start this financial year.</p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 09/06/2023 11:52:27 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
	tabling member	4526 label Biography information for David Warburton

1627857

	registered interest
	date	15/05/2023
	answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	answering dept id	13
	answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	hansard heading	Flood Control: Somerset
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to help ensure that Somerset is more resilient to future flood risk.
	tabling member constituency	Somerton and Frome
	tabling member printed	David Warburton
	uin	185042
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/05/2023 answer text <p>Somerset has seen significant investment in recent years and has benefitted from the formation of the Somerset Rivers Authority partnership. Over £80 million of investment since 2014 in flood risk interventions helps the Environment Agency better manage flooding. It allows the Environment Agency to take pre-emptive action to delay the onset of flooding, to evacuate the waters more effectively. Together this enables communities to be more resilient and to recover more rapidly from flooding. The below investment was delivered in 2014/15:</p><ul><li>£6m on dredging, financed by DEFRA, delivered by the Environment Agency</li><li>£20m on raising roads and drainage improvements financed by Department of Transport delivered by Somerset County Council</li><li>£20m on repairing flood damage to assets from Defra Flood defence grant-in-aid</li><li>£13m on improvements to the Sowy and Kings Sedgemoor Drain from Heart of the South West Local Enterprise Partnership</li><li>£3.5m on Pumping station extra capacity and improvements at Aller and Westonzoyland</li><li>£500k improvements to the Parrett and Tone hydraulic model.</li></ul><p> </p><p>The Environment Agency are continuing to invest in Somerset, this includes maintaining existing defences and also helping communities to adapt and become more resilient in the face of a changing climate. Ongoing investment includes:</p><p> </p><ul><li>Bridgwater Tidal Barrier scheme – investment of over £128m – Operational barrier by 2026.</li><li>Dunball Sluice refurbishment – total investment of around £3.6m. Delivery by 2024</li><li>Pumping Station upgrades – Project to invest around £5.5m. Complete by 2025</li><li>Reservoir improvement investment (public safety) – Investment Program of £19m – Delivery complete by 2027</li><li>Taunton Strategic Flood Alleviation Improvements – Council have agreed £6m funding in 3 interventions:</li></ul><p>1. River Tone left bank defence improvements, Frieze Hill to Town Bridge</p><p>2. Raising of Firepool lockgate and defences between the River Tone and the Bridgwater to Taunton Canal (TTC10)</p><p>3. Longrun Meadows - optimising flood water storage.</p><p> </p><p>Communities in Ilminster, Chard and Minehead are also benefitting from recently approved investment to help reduce flood risk. The Environment Agency and Somerset Council have secured funding from the Frequently Flooded Allowance fund to carry out investigative studies on what future flood risk interventions are required.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 19/05/2023 10:31:56 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
	tabling member	4526 label Biography information for David Warburton

1627858

	registered interest
	date	15/05/2023
	answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	answering dept id	13
	answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	hansard heading	Floods: Somerset
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many (a) homes and (b) businesses in Somerset were affected by flooding in each of the last 10 years.
	tabling member constituency	Somerton and Frome
	tabling member printed	David Warburton
	uin	185043
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/05/2023 answer text <table><tbody><tr><td colspan="2"><p><strong>Property Flooding Overview</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>Year</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Number of Properties Flooded</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>2011</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>15</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>2012</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>11</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>2013</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>2</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>2014</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>173</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>2015</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>0</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>2016</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>22</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>2017</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>10</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>2018</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>0</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>2019</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>0</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>2020</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>26</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>2021</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>45</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>Total</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>304</strong></p></td></tr></tbody></table><p><strong><em> </em></strong></p><p>The above table shows the number of properties flooded during the last 10 years across both business and homes, and includes all sources of flooding – surface water, fluvial and coastal. The source of most of the data comes from Somerset Council report produced post flooding which is why the information is not split between homes and businesses. These reports are produced as part of the Flood &amp; Water Management Act 2010. The reports from 2022 have not yet been published, although the Environment Agency are not aware of any properties flooding in Somerset during 2022.</p><p> </p><p>For 2023 the Environment Agency estimated that 5 properties flooded in January and around 120 properties flooded in May, however they are working with Somerset Council to confirm exact numbers.</p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 23/05/2023 15:33:52 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
	tabling member	4526 label Biography information for David Warburton

1627860

	registered interest
	date	15/05/2023
	answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	answering dept id	13
	answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	hansard heading	Flood Control: Somerset
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the resilience of flood protection measures in (a) Somerset, (b) East Somerset and (c) the River Cam catchment area during the winter of 2022–23.
	tabling member constituency	Somerton and Frome
	tabling member printed	David Warburton
	uin	185044
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/05/2023 answer text <p>Much of Somerset is below sea level and many of its rivers are raised above the ground, so it will always be at risk of coastal and fluvial flooding. In January 2023, the Environment Agency put in place the largest temporary pumping operation in its history on the Somerset Levels and Moors. In combination with the innovative way water was managed through the system, this meant that on this occasion, widespread flooding of property was avoided.</p><p> </p><p>During the Spring, East Somerset has experienced some of the heaviest rainfall ever recorded in the area. This has led to roads becoming unpassable, and in the case of the River Cam, around 100 houses flooding. In all cases, the flood protection measures performed as designed, but were overwhelmed by the volume and intensity of rainfall.</p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 23/05/2023 15:29:53 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
	tabling member	4526 label Biography information for David Warburton

1610427

	registered interest
	date	14/04/2023
	answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	answering dept id	13
	answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	hansard heading	Sewage: Waste Disposal
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the impact of sewage spillages on river water quality.
	tabling member constituency	Somerton and Frome
	tabling member printed	David Warburton
	uin	180560
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 21/04/2023 answer text <p>We have been consistently clear that the failure of water companies to adequately reduce sewage discharges is totally unacceptable. That is why in August 2022, we published the <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/storm-overflows-discharge-reduction-plan" target="_blank">Storm Overflows Discharge Reduction Plan</a> - the most ambitious plan to reduce sewage discharges from storm overflows in water company history.</p><p> </p><p>Environment Agency data shows that 7% of waterbodies in England failed to reach Good Ecological Status because of storm overflows in 2019, a significant contribution to the 36% affected by the wider water industry. This compares to agriculture affecting 40% of water bodies and urban and transport affecting 18%.</p><p> </p><p>We are committed to increasing transparency. We have increased the number of storm overflows monitored across the network from 7% in 2010 to 91% in 2022, and we will reach 100% cover by the end of the year.</p><p> </p><p>Earlier this month, we launched our consultation on Continuous Water Quality Monitoring and Event Duration Monitoring. This outlines the Government’s proposals to enhance the monitoring of storm overflow and final effluent discharges.</p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 21/04/2023 12:57:59 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
	tabling member	4526 label Biography information for David Warburton

1610428

	registered interest
	date	14/04/2023
	answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	answering dept id	13
	answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	hansard heading	Sewage: Waste Disposal
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to reduce sewage discharges in Somerton and Frome constituency.
	tabling member constituency	Somerton and Frome
	tabling member printed	David Warburton
	uin	180561
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/04/2023 answer text <p>Last year, Government published the <a href="https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1101686/Storm_Overflows_Discharge_Reduction_Plan.pdf" target="_blank">Storm Overflows Discharge Reduction Plan</a>, requiring water companies to deliver their largest ever infrastructure investment - £56 billion capital investment over 25 years.</p><p> </p><p>In February 2023, I asked water and sewerage companies to set an action plan on every storm overflow in England. I have also announced water companies will face higher penalties that are quicker and easier to enforce.</p><p> </p><p>In Frome and Somerton, the Environment Agency (EA) are scrutinising Wessex Water’s performance and asset management on a number of fronts, including:</p><ul><li>Working with Wessex Water to implement event duration monitoring to understand how often and for how long storm sewage overflows occur. This enables them to address their network performance and reduce spills.</li><li>Continuing to take tough action where water companies cause sewage pollution of our watercourses by incidents, whether through failing assets or poor maintenance. The EA have a number of enforcement cases against Wessex Water pending.</li></ul><p> </p><p>The EA also regulate private discharges from small-scale sewage treatment works in this rural catchment. They have a monitoring programme, and failures in discharge quality are subject to robust follow-up and, if appropriate, formal action to ensure improvements are made.</p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 20/04/2023 09:38:40 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
	tabling member	4526 label Biography information for David Warburton

1352897

	registered interest
	date	06/09/2021
	answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	answering dept id	13
	answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	hansard heading	Phosphates: Pollution
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure that the Environment Agency has sufficient funding and resources to manage phosphate pollution in (a) Somerset and (b) England.
	tabling member constituency	Somerton and Frome
	tabling member printed	David Warburton
	uin	43615
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/09/2021 answer text <p>The water environment faces multiple pressures, including from population growth and climate change. Improving our water environment will be challenging and requires a combined effort of government, industry, businesses and civil society. The Government and its agencies, including the Environment Agency, are taking action. We are committed to our goal of delivering clean and plentiful water, as set out in the 25 Year Environment Plan.</p><p>Defra and its agencies received a £1 billion increase in overall funding at the 2020 spending review so we can do more to tackle climate change and protect our environment for future generations. Discussions are underway about the allocation of funding through the upcoming spending review to support delivery of the government's environmental priorities.</p><p>In addition, from 2020 to 2025 water companies are investing £7.1 billion to protect and improve the water environment. This includes £600 million of additional funding for the environment enabled through the Government and regulators' Green Recovery scheme.</p><p>The Government is aware of the impact of phosphate and other pollutants on the degradation of waterbodies in Somerset and nationally. We are working closely with Natural England and the Environment Agency (EA) to provide the tools to address this problem. I have also been working with MHCLG on the nutrient pollution taskforce, which meets every four to six weeks, to ensure action is coordinated and joined up.</p><p>Regulations, including the Farming Rules for Water, are in place to protect the water environment from diffuse agricultural pollution.</p><p>We have increased agricultural inspections in Somerset and other affected areas to address phosphate pollution at source by recently allocating the EA an additional £1.2 million to significantly increase the number of inspectors visiting farmers. We have also escalated our efforts to help farmers take voluntary action beyond regulatory requirements to reduce water pollution by expanding the Catchment Sensitive Farming programme - jointly run by Natural England, EA and Defra - to operate across the whole of England.</p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow grouped question UIN 43616 43620 question first answered 09/09/2021 13:34:25 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
	tabling member	4526 label Biography information for David Warburton

1352900

	registered interest
	date	06/09/2021
	answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	answering dept id	13
	answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	hansard heading	Rivers: Pollution Control
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the effect on the health of England's rivers of reductions in funding allocated to the Environment Agency since 2010.
	tabling member constituency	Somerton and Frome
	tabling member printed	David Warburton
	uin	43616
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/09/2021 answer text <p>The water environment faces multiple pressures, including from population growth and climate change. Improving our water environment will be challenging and requires a combined effort of government, industry, businesses and civil society. The Government and its agencies, including the Environment Agency, are taking action. We are committed to our goal of delivering clean and plentiful water, as set out in the 25 Year Environment Plan.</p><p>Defra and its agencies received a £1 billion increase in overall funding at the 2020 spending review so we can do more to tackle climate change and protect our environment for future generations. Discussions are underway about the allocation of funding through the upcoming spending review to support delivery of the government's environmental priorities.</p><p>In addition, from 2020 to 2025 water companies are investing £7.1 billion to protect and improve the water environment. This includes £600 million of additional funding for the environment enabled through the Government and regulators' Green Recovery scheme.</p><p>The Government is aware of the impact of phosphate and other pollutants on the degradation of waterbodies in Somerset and nationally. We are working closely with Natural England and the Environment Agency (EA) to provide the tools to address this problem. I have also been working with MHCLG on the nutrient pollution taskforce, which meets every four to six weeks, to ensure action is coordinated and joined up.</p><p>Regulations, including the Farming Rules for Water, are in place to protect the water environment from diffuse agricultural pollution.</p><p>We have increased agricultural inspections in Somerset and other affected areas to address phosphate pollution at source by recently allocating the EA an additional £1.2 million to significantly increase the number of inspectors visiting farmers. We have also escalated our efforts to help farmers take voluntary action beyond regulatory requirements to reduce water pollution by expanding the Catchment Sensitive Farming programme - jointly run by Natural England, EA and Defra - to operate across the whole of England.</p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow grouped question UIN 43615 43620 question first answered 09/09/2021 13:34:25 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
	tabling member	4526 label Biography information for David Warburton

1352901

	registered interest
	date	06/09/2021
	answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	answering dept id	13
	answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	hansard heading	Phosphates: Pollution Control
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent enforcement activity the Environment Agency has undertaken to help control the release of phosphates from the agricultural sector in the Somerset Levels and Moors Ramsar catchment area.
	tabling member constituency	Somerton and Frome
	tabling member printed	David Warburton
	uin	43617
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/09/2021 answer text <p>We are increasing agricultural inspections in Somerset and other affected areas, which will help address phosphate pollution at source, by recently allocating the Environment Agency (EA) an additional £1.2 million to significantly increase the number of inspectors visiting farmers. We have also escalated our efforts to help farmers take voluntary action beyond regulatory requirements to reduce water pollution by expanding the Catchment Sensitive Farming programme - jointly run by Natural England, EA and Defra - to operate across the whole of England.</p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 09/09/2021 14:15:41 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
	tabling member	4526 label Biography information for David Warburton

1352904

	registered interest
	date	06/09/2021
	answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	answering dept id	13
	answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	hansard heading	Phosphates: Pollution Control
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the speed of investment in sewage water treatment by Wessex Water to reduce phosphorous discharge.
	tabling member constituency	Somerton and Frome
	tabling member printed	David Warburton
	uin	43618
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/09/2021 answer text <p>To address water company derived phosphates, the Environment Agency sets limits based on achieving statutory objectives. Improvements to treatment works or through changes to land use are planned on a 5 year cycle of asset improvements with the water companies. Wessex Water is expecting to invest up to £57m across Somerset to achieve phosphate removal targets by 2024.</p><p>In addition to regulatory requirements, the EA is working with Wessex Water to trial nature-based solutions such as wetlands and woodlands as part of the government's green recovery initiative. This involves rewarding landowners and farmers for land use changes that will significantly reduce phosphate releases.</p><p>There is more to be done to reduce phosphorous discharge from sewage water treatment. The Strategic Policy Statement for Ofwat, which is currently out for consultation, outlines the government's ambition for Ofwat to drive water companies to be more ambitious in their environmental planning and delivery to contribute towards our environmental goals and enhance the quality of the water environment.</p><p>We have also introduced the requirement for at least one legally binding water target in the Environment Bill. This target will complement existing regulations and legislation, moving us closer to achieving our goal of clean and plentiful water set out in Defra's 25 Year Environment Plan.</p> answering member constituency Taunton Deane answering member printed Rebecca Pow question first answered 09/09/2021 13:25:36 answering member 4522 label Biography information for Rebecca Pow
	tabling member	4526 label Biography information for David Warburton