South West Water Strategic Environmental Assessment of Water Resources Plan 2009 Summary Document
Hyder Consulting (UK) Limited 2212959 5th Floor The Pithay All Saints Street Bristol BS1 2NL United Kingdom Tel: +44 (0)870 000 3003 Fax: +44 (0)870 000 3903 www.hyderconsulting.com South West Water Strategic Environmental Assessment of Water Resources Plan 2009 Summary Document Author Gemma Blackler Checker Nicola Hartley Approver David Hourd Report No DV53405/NTS3 Date 16/03/2009 This report has been prepared for South West Water in accordance with the terms and conditions of appointment for Strategic Environmental Assessment of Water Resources Plan 2009 dated March 2009. Hyder Consulting (UK) Limited (2212959) cannot accept any responsibility for any use of or reliance on the contents of this report by any third party.
Introduction Hyder Consulting Ltd. was appointed by South West Water to carry out a Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) of its Water Resources Plan (WRP). The water industry, through UK Water Industry Research Ltd (UKWIR), recognises that WRPs may be subject to SEA under the requirements of the European Directive 2001/42/EC on the assessment of effects of certain plans and programmes on the environment (the SEA Directive). The SEA Directive has been transposed into UK legislation as Regulations. In England this is the Environmental Assessment of Plans and Programmes Regulations 2004 (Statutory Instrument 2004, No. 1633). South West Water has chosen to undertake an SEA to ensure that environmental issues are considered throughout the development of the WRP. (both positive and negative) of the Plan and its reasonable alternatives. The findings of the SEA are presented in the Environmental Report 1. The South West Water WRP The Water Act 2003 introduced a legal requirement into the Water Industry Act 1991 for water companies to prepare, publish and maintain WRPs. These new provisions are contained in sections 37A to 37D of the Water Industry Act and came into force in April 2007. The WRP outlines how South West Water proposes to meet the essential water supply needs of its customers through to the year 2035 in a sustainable manner. The WRP covers all of South West Water s water supply area, which covers Cornwall and Devon and small parts of Somerset and Dorset, shown in Figure 1 below. Figure 1: South West Water Strategic Supply Areas (SSAs) An Environmental Report of the Draft WRP 2008, detailing the SEA process and outcomes, was prepared and then consulted upon in May 2008. Following the consultation, a Second Draft WRP and Environmental Report were produced before the WRP was finalised. This Summary Document provides a non-technical summary of the information provided in the Environmental Report of the Final WRP 2009. The Purpose of SEA The primary aim of the SEA process is to provide for a high-level of protection of the environment. By ensuring the integration of environmental issues into the preparation of plans and programmes, SEA encourages sustainable development. SEA is a decision-support tool, providing information on the environmental effects of the WRP. The output of the SEA process informs both the Plan makers and interested parties of possible significant environmental effects 1 South West Water (2009): Strategic Environmental Assessment of Water Resources Plan Environmental Report. Report Number DV53405/ER3 1
The water resources planning process requires a variety of studies to be carried out in order to establish the supply and demand balance in water supply within all the South West Water SSAs. Where deficits are identified, potential supply and demand management options to meet the shortfall are drawn up. To arrive at the options detailed in the WRP, a range of demand and supply forecasting calculations were carried out. These calculations highlighted those SSAs that are in, or are predicted to fall into, deficit i.e. demand for water will be higher than available supply. A wide range of supply and demand management options were then considered to offset the determined deficit for each zone. These options are referred to as the unconstrained options. South West Water considered a range of unconstrained options for their WRP from the following four categories: Resource Schemes - Options which increase the available water output through the gaining of additional water supply (such as new boreholes abstractions or increased river abstraction). Customer Side - Measures which optimise customer water use efficiency through education, advice, metering and other means. Distribution Management - Measures which improve the efficiency and flexibility of the distribution network, such as leakage management and new pipelines. Production Management - Measures used at the production stage to improve capacity and efficiency such as blending, treatment, pumping regimes etc. These unconstrained options were then narrowed down to a list of feasible options by South West Water using criteria which included environmental, social, economic and practical reasons. The feasible options consisted of generic options, for example, improved water efficiency measures that could be applied anywhere across the plan area and site-specific options that are only appropriate in certain locations. Preferred options were chosen from the list of feasible options in consideration of the security of supply issues, economic factors and environmental impacts (including the findings of the SEA). Consultation is a key component of the water resource planning process. South West Water invited comments on the WRP and Environmental Report at various stages in the plan development process. Habitats Regulations Assessment Screening European Union Directive 92/43/EEC (the Habitats Directive ) 2 requires that any plan or programme likely to have a significant impact upon a Special Area of Conservation (SAC), candidate Special Area of Conservation (csac), Special Protection Area (SPA), potential Special Protection Area (pspa) or Ramsar site, which is not directly concerned with the management of the site for nature conservation, must be subject to an Appropriate Assessment. All of these sites are of European/international importance. A separate screening exercise was undertaken in parallel to the SEA process to determine if the WRP options were likely to result in significant effects on these valuable ecological sites. The Report concluded that the WRP is unlikely to have significant effects upon these sites but that further review of some of the options should be undertaken in the future when they are brought forward for implementation. 2 Council Directive 92/43/EEC of 21 May 1992 on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora 2
The SEA Process The SEA for the WRP has been undertaken in a number of stages as shown below: Stage A Setting the context and objectives, establishing the baseline and deciding on the scope; Stage B Developing and refining alternatives and assessing effects; Stage C Preparing the Environmental Report; Stage D Consulting on the draft plan or programme and the Environmental Report; and Stage E Monitoring the significant effects of implementing the plan or programme on the environment. The Environmental Report is the key output of the SEA process. It details the SEA process for the WRP and presents information on the effects of the Plan. Stage A: Policy Context, Environmental Baseline and Key Issues A number of policies, plans and programmes have been identified and reviewed that set out a range of environmental themes (e.g. water, climate change, biodiversity, landscape, sustainable development, heritage, health and well-being). Environmental baseline data has also been collected in order to establish trends and the current state of the environment. This review highlighted key issues relevant to the WRP and these relate to the following: Predicted rise in population and seasonal fluctuations from tourism could have effects on water supply and demand; There is a need to protect and where possible enhance the condition of designated protected areas (e.g. Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs), SPAs and SACs); A number of rivers have poor water quality. There is a need to enhance this where possible; Climate change poses a long-term threat and there is a need to adapt to the risks it poses; Seasonal variations exist in both groundwater and surface water flows; There are high quality landscapes within the WRP plan area which includes two National Parks and six Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty; There are wide-ranging recreational opportunities and Public Rights of Way; and, There is a need in the WRP plan area to reduce energy use and improve energy efficiency. Stage B: Assessing the WRP SEA Objectives The SEA objectives were developed during Stage A. The SEA objectives provided a framework for assessing and improving the environmental performance of the WRP; ensuring maximum synergy with existing policies and plans. The SEA objectives are as follows (not in any order of priority): 1. Protection and enhancement of biodiversity, key habitats and species 2. Protection and enhancement of the cultural, historic and industrial heritage resource 3
3. Protection and enhancement of the quality and quantity of the surface water environment and the groundwater resource 4. Ensuring the appropriate and efficient use of land 5. Limiting the causes, effects of, and adapting to climate change 6. Ensuring sustainable use of water resources 7. Protection and enhancement of landscape character 8. Protection and enhancement of human health The above SEA objectives were used to test the WRP options. Consideration of Alternatives As mentioned previously, South West Water has considered a wide range of options (unconstrained options) for their WRP under four categories or strategic alternatives Resource Scheme Customer Side Distribution Management Production Management Due to the complex nature of WRPs, it is not possible to assess one strategic alternative against another, e.g. metering is not necessarily better or worse than repairing leaks. The WRP has considered options from each of these strategic alternatives. Feasible Options The feasible options were assessed against the SEA objectives. Feasible options included a combination of existing projects already initiated, and new schemes. Each feasible option was assessed for its potential impact on each of the SEA objectives in the short, medium and long term. Preferred options were selected through consideration of the security of supply, economic factors and environmental impacts (including the findings of the SEA). Preferred options The primary objective of the WRP is to ensure that all South West Water s customers have a secure supply of water through to 2035, whilst having regard to economics and the environment. Preferred options and their predicted effects are shown in Table 1. SEA Scoring System ++ Major positive + Positive? Uncertain O Neutral - Negative - - Major negative It is possible for options to score a combination of these ratings, for example, there may be potential positive and negative aspects for the same objective. In the table, S, M and L refers to short, medium and long term effects. 4
Table 1 Summary of Preferred Option Effects Options SEA Objectives Biodiversity Cultural Heritage Surface and Ground Water Land Use Climate Change Sustainable use of water Landscape Human Health S M L S M L S M L S M L S M L S M L S M L S M L Sophisticated Conjunctive Management O O O O O O + + + O O O + + + + + + O O O + + + Compulsory metering O O O O O O O + + O O O + + + + + + O O O O O O Changes to existing measured tariffs Targeted water conservation information Advice & information on direct abstraction & irrigation techniques Advice & information on leakage detection & fixing techniques O O O O O O O O + O O O +/O + + +/O + + O O O O O O O O O O O O O O + O O O O + + O + + O O O O O O O O + O O O O O + O O O O + + O + + O O O O O + O O O O O O + + + O O O + + + + + + O O O O O O Water saving devices O O O O O O O + + O O O O + + O + + O O O O O O Recycling & reuse O O O O O O O O O O O O + + + + + + O O O O O O 5
Options SEA Objectives Biodiversity Cultural Heritage Surface and Ground Water Land Use Climate Change Sustainable use of water Landscape Human Health S M L S M L S M L S M L S M L S M L S M L S M L Other water efficiency initiatives Customer supply pipe leakage reduction O O O O O O O + + O O O O + + O + + O O O O O O -/? O O -/? O O -/? O O -/? O O + + + + + + -/? O O -/? O O Leak detection O O O O O O O O + O O O + + + + + + O O O O O O Pressure reduction programme Advanced replacement of infrastructure for leakage reasons Distribution capacity expansion O O O O O O O O O O O O + + + + + + O O O O O O -/? O O -/? O O -/? O O - O O + + + + + + -/? O O -/? O O -/? O O -/? O O O O O O O O O O O O O + -/? O O -/? O O Diagnostic studies O O O O O O O O O O O O + + + + + + O O O O O O Improved leakage detection & reduction on raw water mains Domestic water efficiency project -/? O O -/? O O -/? O O O O O + + + + + + -/? O O -/? O O O O O O O O O O + O O O + + + + + + O O O O O O 6
Options SEA Objectives Biodiversity Cultural Heritage Surface and Ground Water Land Use Climate Change Sustainable use of water Landscape Human Health S M L S M L S M L S M L S M L S M L S M L S M L Small and medium enterprises project Waste water efficiency at WWTW Porth catchment clean up and replacement for Rialton WTW O O O O O O O O + O O O + + + + + + O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O + + + + + + O O O O O O O ++ ++ -/? -/? -/? O ++ ++ - -/+ -/+ O + + O ++ ++ -/? -/? -/? O ++ ++ Reintroduce abstractions at Boswyn & Cargenwyn -/? -/? O -/? O O -/? O O O O O O O O O O O -/? O O -/+/? + + Restormel licence variation -/+/? -/+/? -/+/? O O O + + + O O O + + + + + + O O O + + + Northcombe WTW output increased capacity to 60 Ml/d O O O O O O O O O O O O -/+ -/+ -/+ O O O O O O + + + Roadford/Northcombe pumped storage from Gatherley - - - O O O - - - - - - -/+ -/+ -/+ + + + - O O -/+/? + + 7
Environmental impacts have to be balanced against economic and security of supply issues to meet the needs of the region over the next 25 years. South West Water has sought to make the best use of the water that is already available rather than developing new resources wherever possible. Many of the preferred options score as neutral against most of the SEA objectives and there are clearly many potential benefits as demonstrated by the number of pluses/green boxes, particularly in terms of Climate Change and Sustainable Use of Water. A particularly beneficial option is Porth catchment clean up. It scores several major positives as the option involves the clean up of a polluted catchment which has beneficial effects on biodiversity, surface and groundwater, the sustainable use of water resources and human health and recreation. Some of the options have the potential to have negative effects as indicated by the minuses/orange boxes. In many cases this is as a result of potential construction impacts that would be largely short-term and could be effectively mitigated through good working practices. Some of the preferred options would require new abstraction licences to enable abstraction from surface or groundwater sources. The potential effects on biodiversity resources including designated sites and Biodiversity Action Plan (BAP) Priority habitats and species were considered as part of the SEA. It is considered unlikely that there would be significant negative effects on biodiversity resources. Furthermore, all abstraction licences would have to be subject to a licence consent issued by the Environment Agency and during this process, the Environment Agency has to consider potential effects on environmental resources. Without licence consent South West Water would not be able to proceed with some of the site-specific options. The implementation of the recommended mitigation measures by South West Water means that the options selected are not expected to have any significant adverse environmental impacts. 8 Mitigation Measures South West Water is committed to environmental protection and enhancement and recognises the need to avoid and to mitigate adverse effects on environmental resources as far as possible. Prior to undertaking any works, South West Water will ensure that all appropriate projects are reviewed from an environmental perspective prior to any site works being initiated and that appropriate mitigation measures are implemented. The highest levels of environmental protection will be given to those environmental resources of international and national value, whilst also recognising the value of locally designated sites and interest features. Essentially, the environmental sensitivity of all projects will be considered on a case by case basis. In addition to more specific mitigation measures, a number of general mitigation measures are suggested that are summarised below: Ecological studies to be undertaken, particularly if works are to be carried out in an area with designated sites or BAP Priority habitats and site specific mitigation measures to be developed including good environmental codes of practice and appropriate protected species mitigation as necessary. Archaeological studies to be undertaken where works are to be carried out in an area of cultural heritage or historical value. Avoid impacting upon the setting or integrity of any scheduled monuments or World Heritage Sites when undertaking site works. Any fuel and oil storage on site for the purposes of operating machinery would comply with the Control of Pollution (Oil Storage) (England) Regulations 2001 (Oil Storage Regulations). Applications to be submitted for licence variations and new licences as appropriate. Replacement and/or repair of pipes should minimise disruption and must take into account any sensitive or designated sites, historic or cultural heritage resources, biodiversity and key habitats and species
(as identified in the environmental baseline) and try to avoid affecting the public s opportunities for recreation where possible. Where new pumping stations/wtws are to be built, investigate potential brownfield sites as an alternative to using greenfield sites. Consideration of energy efficiency and including increasing use of energy from renewable sources. Stage C: Preparing the Environmental Report The results of the SEA process have been presented in the Environmental Report and summarised in this Summary Document. monitoring process, South West Water will monitor abstraction rates, rates of flow and groundwater levels for all options where there is an abstraction from a surface or groundwater source in order to ensure that it is within Environment Agency licence conditions. South West Water also monitors leakage, compliance with drinking water standards, carbon emissions and energy consumption (including percentage from renewables). It will be necessary for the monitoring framework to be reviewed and updated on an ongoing basis, particularly in view of the long time span of the plan. Stage D: Consultation Provisions Consultation is a key component of both the WRP preparation process and the SEA process, ensuring that the views of key stakeholders are appropriately incorporated at an early stage and in an effective manner. Consultation on the Draft WRP and Environmental Report took place between May and August 2008. Comments received during this time were incorporated into the Second Draft WRP 2009 and Environmental Report. The WRP and Environmental Report were finalised in March 2009. Stage E: Monitoring A requirement of the SEA process is to monitor potentially significant environmental effects predicted. Monitoring is expected to draw upon existing monitoring programmes (or proposed monitoring programmes) undertaken centrally by the Government, and other organisations, rather than set out to collect a full set of plan specific data, for example, Natural England Condition Assessments of designated sites and Environment Agency river quality data. However, it is the responsibility of the plan-maker to ensure that the data collated is relevant to the significant effects identified through the SEA process and can be used to monitor the environmental effects of the plan. As part of the 9