Thérèse Coffey has written to Office for Environmental Protection (OEP) head Dame Glenys Stacey and described nutrient pollution laws around new developments as “unavoidably burdensome”.
It comes after the government tabled a motion to amend housebuilding water pollution rules to require local authorities to ignore nutrient pollution from from new developments in ecologically sensitive areas in England.
In a letter sent to Thérèse Coffey and Michael Gove, chair of the Office for Environmental Protection (OEP) Dame Glenys Stacey wrote earlier this week stating that the proposed amendment which they claim would unlock 100,000 homes “would degrade the environment”.
It follows campaigners previously calling the OEP ‘toothless’ and coincides with wider concern about the UK’s approach to environmental issues.
Despite the OEP having previously written to the environment secretary, Coffey has carried out measures including deleting National Emissions Ceiling Regulations (NECR) from the Retained EU Law Act.
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In response to Dame Glenys Stacey, Thérèse Coffey has today written a response which states, “I stand by my pledge that we will not weaken our commitment to the environment. You quote a letter in which I continued my pledge regarding protecting the environment. I wrote this in response to your letter regarding the Retained EU Law (Reform and Revocation) Act,” wrote the minister.
“The issue of nutrient neutrality has arisen due to retained EU legislation and case law, particularly the 2018 ruling by the European Court of Justice – imposed on the United Kingdom after the British people had voted to leave the European Union.”
“It is not a longstanding environmental policy or convention. The government recognises the good intentions underpinning nutrient neutrality and that excess nutrients can present detriment to aspects of important habitats.”
“However, the government also considers in its format, it places an unavoidably burdensome process around the offsetting of small quantities of nitrates and phosphates from the wastewater arising from new developments”
She added that the “burdens” had “caused delays” to housing across 62 Local Planning Authorities.
She said that while the government wanted to drop the nutrient pollution requirement it would offset the damage, “there will be no loss of environmental outcomes through the measures we are taking and we are confident our package of measures will in fact improve the environment.”
