Memorandum submitted by the Department
for Environment, Food and Rurral Affairs
DEFRA's 2007 DEPARTMENTAL ANNUAL REPORT
Response to the Efra Committee's preliminary
questions (Part Two)
PSA TARGETS
PSA Target 1: Promoting sustainable development
Pages 30-31 of the Departmental Report state:
Those measures showing deterioration since
1999 are specifically: aviation emissions of greenhouse gases,
fossil fuels used for electricity generation, nitrogen oxide emissions
from electricity generation, carbon dioxide emissions from: households,
private vehicles and road freight, energy supply..., water loss
through leakages, household waste arising, extent of sensitive
areas affected by excessive nitrogen from air pollution, robbery,
infant mortality gap (between highest and lowest rates), childhood
obesity, walking and cycling, children walking to school, ozone
pollution in urban areas, and households living in temporary accommodation.
1. What main action
is the Department taking to tackle under-performance in those
measures showing deterioration on pp 30-31 of the Departmental
Report, in relation to PSA Target 1 (Promoting sustainable development)?
The indicators underpinning the sustainable
development strategy as a set are designed to measure how Government
as a whole is doing in making a reality of sustainable development.
Action on individual issues, such as greenhouse gasses and air
pollution, is described elsewhere in the Departmental Report.
In other areas, such as robbery and childhood obesity, other Departments
lead. Defra's contribution in these cases is to ensure that its
policies are joined-up and make best use of synergies between
policies (eg links between tackling obesity and access to the
natural environment and green spaces).
As champion for sustainable development in Government,
Defra takes the following further actions to contribute to moving
the indicators in the right direction:
— Supporting Government-wide development
of mechanisms to enhance sustainable development considerations
in policy-making: eg by working with HM Treasury to mainstream
accountability for sustainable development across Government in
the Comprehensive Spending Review 2007 and with the Better Regulation
Executive to ensure that sustainable development considerations
are strongly represented in guidance on Impact Assessment (including
a new greenhouse gas test for all policy proposals);
— Sponsoring the Sustainable Development
Commission to work as an independent advisor, advocate, watchdog
and capacity-builder across Government, in its in-depth reviews,
for example, on the Sustainable Communities Plan and with Ofgem
scrutinising economic, social and environmental aspects of Government
policy and making recommendations for improvement;
— Managing governance arrangements
to ensure implementation of the Sustainable Development Strategy
and to create greater policy-cohesion. The Sustainable Development
Programme Board, for example, considered contributions across
Government to the sustainable schools agenda; and
— Working with regional, local
and voluntary organisations to ensure that sustainable development
in their actions too, for example, through the tasking frameworks
for Regional Development Agencies and Government Offices, the
new place-shaping guidance for local authorities and the £4
million initiative Every Action Counts, which unlocks the potential
of the third sector to deliver sustainable development.
PSA 3a: Reversing the long-term decline in the
number of farmland birds
A Defra newsletter from Spring 2007[7]
noted regional variations in farmland bird numbers: in particular,
"a marked north-south difference in population trends"
with numbers falling in the south of England but increasing in
the north.
2. What is the Department doing to address
regional variations in the number of farmland birds?
The regional birds data are published separately
to the PSA data on farmland birds and give an overview of population
changes over the last 12 years. The regional data are not as statistically
robust as the national data (because of the smaller sample sizes)
and, therefore, trends and changes in trends need to be viewed
with caution.
The Department is not directly addressing regional
bird numbers as part of this PSA. The PSA target is used as a
proxy indicator for the general health of the wider countryside
(the land outside of valuable wildlife sites such as Sites of
Special Scientific Interest and National Nature Reserves) rather
than being used as a direct measure of farmland bird populations
per se. Our main delivery mechanism is Environmental Stewardship,
particularly Entry Level Stewardship, and our aim is to increase
the environmental performance of the majority of farmers through
the widespread uptake of a range of environmental options (many
of which will benefit farmland birds). Additionally Higher Level
Stewardship provides locally targeted environmental management
which will benefit declining farmland bird species and other farmland
wildlife.
PSA 5: Sustainable farming and food
Page 44 of the 2006 Autumn Performance Report
(APR) reported slippage because Defra was "behind the [gross
value added] element of the target". Page 45 of the APR shows
a 2005 ratio of 1.18 (UK compared with EU) with an accompanying
graph of "GVA per person UK compared with EU" since
1990.
The 2007 Departmental Report says that the
target is back "on course".
3. Can the Department provide (a) the latest
figures for the Gross Value Added (GVA) ratio per person in the
UK compared with EU and (b) an updated GVA ratio graph, similar
to the one shown on page 45 of the 2006 APR.
(a) The latest estimates for the indicator
show an 8% increase in the ratio in 2006 up to 1.34, back to close
to the trajectory.
PSA 6: Waste and recycling
Page 50 of the 2006 APR said that the 25%
recycling/composting rate by 2005-06 had been met, although the
figures had not yet been audited. The 2007 Departmental Report
does not provide any further information about whether a full
audit of the figures has now taken place.
4. What steps has the Department taken to
ensure that the 26.7 household waste recycling/composting figure
for 2005-06 has been independently audited or validated?
On meeting the 2005-6 target, we believe the
confusion is largely a matter of timing around publication of
the reports. The Autumn Performance Report used a provisional
assessment of meeting the target based on the unaudited Best Value
Performance Indicators. For the 2007 Departmental Report we used
the final WasteDataFlow survey data and so didn't comment explicitly
on the "auditing" process. WasteDataFlow is the web
based system for municipal waste data reporting by UK Local Authorities
to government.
The 26.7% household recycling figure is based
on local authority returns made to WasteDataFlow and published
as part of a National Statistics release (see http://defraweb/environment/statistics/wastats/bulletin.html).
The returns to WasteDataFlow are subject to the following 3 stage
validation process.
(i) Defra's contractors liaise directly with
Local Authorities to validate each individual return to a set
of range and variance checks;
( i) the Environment Agency monitor and audit
the data for the Landfill Allowance Trading Scheme; and
(iii) Defra checks and analyses the data
to National Statistics standards and protocols.
The NAO recently undertook a detailed audit
of the data systems for PSA 6 and rated the system as fit for
purpose.
Page 42 of the Departmental Report says that
Defra paid out £105 million to local authorities in 2006-07
under the Waste Performance and Efficiency Grant programme. A
further £110 million will be provided during 2007-08 and
will be administered by the Department for Communities and Local
Government as part of its Local Area Agreement (LAA) fund.
5. How will the additional £110 million
provided during 2007-08 under the Waste Performance and Efficiency
Grant programme be appropriately targeted by the Department to
ensure it achieves its 2007-08 goal that all local authorities
must at least equal their 2005-06 targets and meet the minimum
level of 20%?
The Waste Performance and Efficiency Grant has
been allocated to local authorities using a simplified version
of the formula used in the Environmental, Protective and Cultural
Services (EPCS) block. This strips the formula down to the core
driver for waste spend, population, adjusted to take account of
commuters and day visitors, as well as the relative costs of waste
operatives' wage costs. The latest available Revenue Out-turn
data are used to ascertain the proportion of waste spend occurring
at waste collection and disposal authority level, and therefore
the proportion of the Grant that should be allocated to each level.
Each local authority in England is allocated a portion of the
grant according to this formula, a full list of is available on
the Defra website at: http://www.defra.gov.uk/environment/waste/localauth/funding/index.htm.
The grant is unringfenced in accordance with the Government's
policy of giving local authorities freedoms and flexibilities.
In 2007/08 the grant is being paid to local authorities through
their Local Area Agreements. It is for local authorities to decide
how to invest this funding to achieve their local objectives and
obligations.
PSA 8: Improving air quality
Page 22 of the Departmental Report says that
objectives for benzene, 1,3-butadeinie, carbon monoxide and lead
in the air quality target were met throughout the UK in 2006 and
Defra is meeting current objectives for all air pollutants in
most parts of the country. However, Figure 7 on page 27 of the
Departmental Report shows that Defra's expenditure on this target
(just over £8 million in three financial years) relates to
monitoring, such as equipment and associated costs of operation.
It remains unclear how Defra itself has been directly responsible
for improving air quality.
6. What has the Department done that can be
directly associated with the reductions in air pollution identified
on pp 22-25 of the Departmental Report, in relation to PSA target
8?
Improving air quality is one of Defra's key
environmental aims and a number of the Department's policy areas
contribute to significant reductions in air pollution in recent
years.
We have led negotiations in Europe and international
fora, such as the new air quality directive, the large
combustion plants directive and the review of the National Emissions
Ceiling Directive, all of which result in national and transboundary
reductions in air pollution. We have implemented several EU directives
which have cut harmful emissions to air, including the solvents
directive, sulphur content in gas oil and petrol vapour recover
regulations.
Defra has steered the phased implementation
of the IPPC Directive with the Environment Agency and local authorities
which sets tighter controls over emissions from a wide range of
industrial processes. We have also been working to ensure that
local authority regulation of other industrial processes is effective
and that measures to reduce emissions are kept up to date. Implementation
of waste licensing controls and measures under our waste strategy
to control and reduce waste combustion have also helped reduce
emissions to air.
Local authorities are key delivery agents for
tackling air pollution at the local level and Defra work closely
with them to help them achieve this providing central support
services and guidance. In addition, Defra's annual air quality
grant programme, and its predecessor programmes, have since 1997
provided local authorities with over £33 million to support
capital expenditure associated with their statutory duties for
Local Air Quality Management, including local projects to improve
air quality at local level, for example feasibility studies for
low emission zones. DfT funding under the last round of Local
Transport Plans included an element to support local authorities'
air quality traffic management improvement works.
The Department for Transport are responsible
for many of the policy levers which can help reduce emissions
of pollutants. Road transport is responsible for up to 70% of
air pollution emissions in urban areas, which is why we share
the PSA with DfT. Defra maintain close links with DfT and have
been instrumental in developing and supporting implementation
of transport policies which impact on air quality. For example,
negotiations on Euro vehicle emissions standards are providing
significant reductions in the PSA's pollutants. Further reductions
will be achieved under Euro 5 and 6 standards which have just
been adopted.
Additionally, our environmental policies, including
for air quality, are developed with consideration for their impact
on climate change. Recent reviews of the Air Quality Strategy
and Climate Change Programme have both looked to identify measures
which could have co-benefits.
7. How does the Department intend to achieve
the targets for nitrogen oxide and particulates (PM 10)?
We are achieving, and projecting to meet, the
targets for nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and particles (PM10) in the
majority of the country— up to 99.5% in some cases. But
we recognise that meeting these in all parts of the country will
be very difficult—if not impossible in some cases. This
problem is faced by most other Member States in Europe who will
also be unable to meet corresponding EU air quality limit values.
This has been recognised by the Commission and the draft directive,
currently under negotiation, would provide Member States with
several more years to meet the targets.
The recent review of the Air Quality Strategy
identified additional policy options which, if implemented, would
give significant gains in public health, reduce the number of
areas of exceedence of the PSA's objectives and move us closer
to their achievement. We plan to publish a revised Air Quality
Strategy this summer.
BIODIVERSITY
Page 49 of the Departmental Report says:
"The review of the UK's list of priority species and habitats
on scientific grounds has been completed".
The Biodiversity Action Plan website, however,
states:
Targets have been revised for all terrestrial,
freshwater and coastal habitats and for most species. A notable
exception is the targets for most marine habitats and species.
The revision of these targets, together with those of the few
terrestrial species for which no revised targets were submitted,
will await completion of the priority species and habitats review.
(http://www.ukbap.org.uk)
8.When does the Department
expect the priority species and habitats review to be completed?
The review is now complete and was published
on 6 June at the link above. The next stage will be to invite
Ministers of all four UK administrations to approve and adopt
the list.
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
July 2007
7 http://statistics.defra.gov.uk/esg/publications/regstatsnews/Final%29Spring%202007%20Newsletter.pdf Back
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