Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the extent of the (a) damage and (b) pollution of the chalk aquifers in the Chilterns as a result of the tunnelling activity of HS2 Ltd.
The Environmental Statement for Phase One of HS2 reports the results of the environmental impact assessment. This includes the effects on water resources, which are reported in volume 5: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/hs2-phase-one-environmental-statement-volume-5-water-resources
HS2 Ltd, which is responsible for the safe construction of HS2, has been working closely with experts from the Environment Agency and Affinity Water for a number of years to ensure that HS2 construction work does not cause contamination of the chalk aquifer, or in any way affect the ongoing provision of high quality drinking water from it.