06 Dec 2017
An interesting recent article showing that Defra’s budget has halved in just nine years and the Chancellor plans more cuts. Concerns about Defra’s preparedness for Brexit have been raised after the small print of the Chancellor’s Budget revealed the department would face further cuts over the next three years. In 2008, Defra had £3.1 billion […]
06 Dec 2017
Giving evidence last week to a Parliamentary Inquiry, Environment Agency chief James Bevan admitted that England will miss its already deferred water quality targets out to 2027. The Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee took evidence on Wednesday 21 November on the work of the Environment Agency. The EA is the main public body for […]
06 Dec 2017
Following the consultation it initiated in 2015, Defra has released its conclusions on farming rules for water. Click here for a press notice, policy paper and overview of the rules. Defra’s documents outline the new rules and say that in essence: the rules cover both management of fertilisers and manure and management of soils; in […]
06 Dec 2017
According to a new report by EurEau, the European federation of National Associations of Water Services, €45 Billion is invested annually in water treatment and delivery around Europe. However this is unevenly distributed amongst European member states, and the European water sector is in need of greater investment in infrastructure overall. Aging drinking water networks, waste water collection systems and waste […]
06 Dec 2017
Defra, the Environment Agency, Natural England and the Rural Payments Agency are developing a scheme under the Rural Development Programme for England (RDPE) called the Water Environment Grant (WEG) to fund improvements to the water environment. The proposed scheme is being designed to support delivery of projects that are currently funded through the Water Environment […]
05 Dec 2017
The Marine Environment Achievements looking back and forward 25 years From: Bob Earll – Coastal Futures 2018 Dear Colleagues The Government are proposing a 25 year environment plan. Coincidentally, 2018 will be the 25th anniversary of the Coastal Futures conferences. To mark this it would be great to get your response to two questions, the outcomes of […]
04 Dec 2017
Bob Earll It has been a remarkable week for the campaign against single use plastics and the need for deposit return schemes [see plastic bottle tracker PBT] On Dec 1st the Daily Mail carried in its front page article news that further supermarkets, M&S and Waitrose are thinking of breaking rank with the British Retail […]
04 Dec 2017
Thanks to Richard White for the heads-up on these: The Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee are carrying out an inquiry into ‘…how potential changes to the fisheries and seafood trading arrangements between the UK and the EU will affect fishers, seafood processors, consumers, coastal communities and the environment. ‘ Two session collecting oral evidence […]
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