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Poultry Regulations

Mr. Cameron: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what representations she has received about the planned threshold of 350 birds for the new regulations concerning poultry; and if she will make a statement. [117143]

Mr. Morley: Commission Directive 2002/4/EC requires all establishments with flocks of 350 or more hens producing eggs for human consumption to be registered. Interested parties were consulted during the negotiations and a further consultation exercise will be held on the draft Regulations.

Press Officers

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what guidance she has issued on media lines to be taken by press officers on stories in the event of a story breaking; and if she will place the current list in the Library. [117836]

Alun Michael: Statements and answers for the news media are prepared in line with central guidance including the Ministerial Code, the Civil Service Code and the Guidance on the Work of the Government Information Service.

Puma Attack

Mr. Cawsey: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent reports she has received of an attack by a puma on a horse in north Lincolnshire. [118040]

Mr. Morley: This Department was asked by the Police investigating injuries to a horse in North Lincolnshire for advice on the possibility that these were caused by an attack by a puma. The Department has not made its own investigation.

Puma are not native to the UK and are not naturally found in the wild in this country. The Department is not aware of any confirmed instances of a puma or other big cats of unknown origin being found out of captivity in England in the last 20 years. Injuries to domestic animals are more likely to be due to other causes. Dogs are sometimes involved.

The release of puma into the wild is prohibited under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 and possession of this species is regulated under the Dangerous Wild Animals Act 1976 and Zoo Licensing Act 1981.

Salmon Tagging

Mr. Key: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to her answer of 22 May, Official Report, column 895W, how

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many salmon have been tagged with radio transmitting or other tags in the Hampshire Avon since 1990; whether the project is now concluded; if she will place in the Library the results and advice given to Government and other organisations; and if she will list the organisations which may receive the advice. [117330]

Mr. Morley: Since 1990 there have been a number of projects resulting in the tagging of 24,291 salmon. The current research project by the Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (CEFAS) studying thermal habitats in freshwater started recently and will be reported when concluded. The report will be available to conservation and environmental organisations and other interested parties. Copies will also be placed in the library of the House.

Statutory Instruments

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many statutory instruments her Department has made in each year since 1997. [117338]

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Alun Michael: Defra was created on 8 June 2001. Information on the Department's Statutory instruments since that time is as follows:

	Number
8 June to 31 December 2001	219
1 January to 31 December 2002	127
1 January to 10 June 2003	61

All Statutory Instruments are available on the HMSO website at: http://www.legislation.hmso.gov.uk/stat.htm

Waste Management

Mr. Battle: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what modifications to waste management licences have been (a) applied for and (b) authorised by the Environment Agency or its predecessor regulatory body in each year since 1990, broken down by waste site. [116331]

Mr. Meacher: The table below shows the number of modifications issued by the Environment Agency.

Modifications are not necessarily issued in the same year that the application is received.

Site type	2000		2001		2002
A01-Co-disposal landfill site	27	(16)	32	(20)	13	(12)
A02-Other landfill site taking special waste	4	(1)	12	(10	6	(50)
A03-Borehole	1	(1)	—	—	—	—
A04-Household, commercial and industrial waste landfill	25	(22)	15	(9)	10	(11)
A05-Landfill taking non-biodegradeable wastes	27	(22)	14	(14)	4	(3)
A06-Landfill taking other wastes	24	(24)	7	(7)	7	(3)
A07-Industrial waste landfill (factory curtilage)	5	(3)	1	(3)	3	(1)
A08-Lagoon	3	(1)	1	(1)	1	(1)
A09-Special waste transfer station	27	(16)	20	(16)	12	(16)
A10-In-house storage facility	1	—	2	(3)	—	—
A11-Household, commercial and industrial waste transfer station	99	(63)	76	(51)	69	(54)
A12-Clinical waste transfer station	2	(2)	8	(3)	3	(6)
A13-Household waste amenity site	2	(2)	6	(6)	4	(3)
A14-Transfer station taking non-biodegradable wastes	3	(2)	3	(4)	—	—
A15-Material recycling treatment facility	7	(1)	3	(5)	3	(1)
A16-Physical treatment facility	10	(5)	6	(7)	4	(4)
A17-Physico-chemical treatment facility	2	(2)	5	(4)	3	(1)
A18-Incinerator	1	—	2	(2)	1	—
A19-Metal recycling site (vehicle dismantler)	7	(7)	3	(2)	3	(1)
A20-Metal recycling site (mixed MRSs)	8	(1)	11	(4)	15	(14)
A21-Chemical treatment Facility	3	(3)	3	(3)	—	—
A22-Composting Facility	2	(1)	3	(3)	4	(2)
A23-Biological Treatment Facility	3	(1)	8	(6)	3	(3)
A24-Mobile Plant	—	—	12	(11)	5	(6)

Nitrates

Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what representations she has received concerning progress made on designating nitrate-sensitive areas required under the urban waste water treatment directive since 1997. [117486]

Mr. Morley: No representations have been received on the eight Sensitive Areas (Nitrate) identified under the Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive in England since 1997.

Water companies providing sewage treatment services is the industrial sector affected by identifications of Sensitive Areas (Nitrate). Such identifications require water companies to provide specific treatment to reduce nitrates present in sewage at sewage treatment works which monitoring by the Environment Agency reveals as having an impact on associated water supply sources. These measures complement those taken under the Nitrates Directive to reduce the diffuse pollution of waters by nitrates arising from agricultural practices.

Funding of such sewage treatment is obtained through the five yearly Periodic Review of water company price limits.

Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many nitrate-sensitive areas were designated in each year since 1997; and if she will make a statement. [117531]

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Alun Michael: There are 32 nitrate sensitive areas in England where voluntary, compensated agricultural measures were introduced, under the Nitrate Sensitive Areas Scheme, to reduce nitrate concentrations in sources of public drinking water. These were designated in 1994 and 1995. No new areas have been designated since then and the Scheme will close on 30 September 2003.

The EU Nitrates Directive requires all known areas of land draining into nitrate-polluted waters to be designated as nitrate vulnerable zones. In 1996, the Government designated 66 nitrate vulnerable zones covering eight per cent. of England's land area, and in October 2002, designated nitrate vulnerable zones covering an additional 47 per cent. of England's land area. This brings total coverage of England to around 55 per cent. Further details on the location of the nitrate vulnerable zones can be obtained from the Defra NVZ web pages (www.defra.gov.uk/environment/water/quality/nitrate).

Water Industry

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate she has made of the average change in water bills since 1997, broken down by water company area, attributable to debts arising from non-payment of water bills. [117341]

Mr. Morley: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has made no estimate.

The Office of Water Services (Ofwat) collects information on the level of debt and associated recovery costs on a yearly basis. Price limits set by Ofwat in 1999 for the period 2000–01 to 2004–05 made no assumptions about any increases in costs due to non-payment of water bills. However, interim determinations for three companies—Dee Valley Water, Severn Trent Water and Yorkshire Water—have subsequently resulted in price increases, partly owing to the effects of increasing bad debt and debt recovery costs but this element is not separately quantified. Any increases in costs for other companies will be considered when price limits are next reviewed in 2004.

Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what further guidance she has given the Director General of Water Services in connection with his periodic review of water company price limits. [117539]

Mr. Morley: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State issued initial guidance to the Director General of Water Services on the periodic review of water price limits in January 2003. A copy has been placed in the House Library. Further guidance will be issued in 2004.

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