Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department has discussed with local planning authorities the potential for allowing alternative on-site wastewater treatment solutions where these may reduce nutrient discharge into protected waterways.

The Government supports innovation in the water sector and works closely with regulators to ensure solutions comply with requirements.

Nutrient pollution from wastewater is one of the key pressures affecting our rivers, lakes, and seas. The Government is committed to tackling Phosphorus pollution caused by wastewater discharges.

In the Environmental Improvement Plan 2025, we set an interim target to reduce phosphorus loadings by 55% by 2030 against a 2020 baseline. To meet this target, we will require water companies to upgrade 440 wastewater treatment works by 2030 to meet stricter phosphorus permit limits, reducing harmful nutrient pollution from treated wastewater.