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20 July 2009 : Column 740W—continued
Waste Disposal: Fees and Charges
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what responses his Department has received from (a) the Local Authority Recycling Advisory Committee, (b) Wastematters, (c) the National Association of Waste Disposal Officers, (d) the Chartered Institute of Waste Management, (e) the Association of Public Service Excellence, (f) the County Surveyors Society Waste Panel and (g) Keep Britain Tidy on consultations which his Department has conducted on waste incentive schemes in the last two years. [286646]
Dan Norris: The Department received written responses on consultations from these bodies detailed as follows:
Consultation on the Incentives for Recycling by Households, May 2007:
(a) the Local Authority Recycling Advisory Committee
(d) Chartered Institute of Waste Management
(e) Association of Public Service Excellence
(f) County Surveyors Society
Informal consultation on draft guidance, June 2008:
(a) the Local Authority Recycling Advisory Committee
(d) Chartered Institute of Waste Management
(f) County Surveyors Society
Formal consultation on statutory Good Recycling Service guidance, September 2008:
(e) Association of Public Service Excellence
Responses were not received on any consultation from (b) Wastematters, (c) the National Association of Waste Disposal Officers or (g) Keep Britain Tidy.
Waste Disposal: Hazardous Substances
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what waste products have been classified as (a) inert and (b) toxic waste in the last 18 months. [286964]
Dan Norris: The Environment Agency does not classify individual waste arisings. While it does collect data on all wastes received at sites that it regulates, this information describes the waste using the European waste catalogue codes and as such would not allow the Environment Agency to state which individual waste products have been classified as either inert or 'toxic' (a hazardous property that could make a waste hazardous).
Waste Disposal: Inspections
Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many inspections were carried out at industrial and waste sites by staff of each Environment Agency office in each year since 1997. [286369]
Dan Norris: The following table shows the total number of inspections of industrial and waste sites carried out in each Environment Agency region in each year since 1997. Environment Agency records do not provide an office by office breakdown. Inspections include visits and audits for processes regulated under six regimes: Integrated Pollution Control, Pollution Prevention and Control, Waste management licensing, Environmental Permitting Regulation, Special (Hazardous) Waste, and Waste Producers.
| 1997-98 | 1998-99 | 1999-00 | 00-01 | 01-02 | 02-03 | 03-04 | 04-05 | 05-06 | 06-07 | 07-08 | 08-09 | Total | |
Waste Disposal: Private Finance Initiative
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment he has made of the effect of the credit crunch on schemes for waste disposal plants under the private finance initiative. [286795]
Dan Norris: DEFRA continually assesses the relevant finance and construction markets to maintain an up to date understanding of the effect that conditions in credit markets may have on the private finance initiative waste projects. This includes meeting with banks, contractors and waste companies as well as individual local authorities.
Our findings show that while tightening credit conditions since 2008 have had an effect on the availability of finance, commercial lenders are maintaining strong interest in financing waste private finance initiative projects. We also continue to see good evidence of new entrant interest from contractors in recent bid lists.
Waste Management: Private Finance Initiative
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent discussions he has had with representatives of the waste industry on the effects on waste disposal plants operated under private finance initiatives of the economic downturn. [287703]
Dan Norris: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs recently attended the Futuresource conference with representatives of the waste industry, at which a number of issues affecting the waste industry were discussed.
Commercial lenders are maintaining strong interest in financing waste private finance initiative projects and we continue to see good evidence of new interest from contractors in recent bid lists.
The granting of PFI credits for waste projects continues, the most recent being awarded to a partnership between Coventry city council, Solihull metropolitan borough council and Warwickshire county council under their umbrella-title 'Project Transform' in June this year.
Water Charges
Frank Dobson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate he has made of the effect of universal water metering on (a) the net income of the water industry and (b) the rate of consumption of water by domestic consumers. [286786]
Huw Irranca-Davies: No estimate has been made of the effect of universal metering on the net income on the water industry.
Research shows that, on average, the rate of consumption by household customers is reduced by about 10 per cent. when metered.
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what definition his Department uses of a permeable surface in relation to surface water drainage charges. [288074]
Huw Irranca-Davies: Government guidance to Ofwat does not define permeable surfaces. It is generally accepted that they include, for example, burial grounds, grass sports fields and school playing fields. These drain naturally rather than into public sewers. Permeable areas should not count towards the chargeable area under site area charging for surface water drainage.
Water Charges: Voluntary Organisations
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs in which water company areas voluntary groups are affected by the new system of surface water charges; and what assessment has been made of the likelihood of such systems being taken up in other such areas. [288981]
Huw Irranca-Davies: Four of the 10 water and sewerage companies in England and Wales have switched to site area charging for surface water drainage: Northumbrian Water, Severn Trent Water, United Utilities and Yorkshire Water.
While Ofwat is recommending that other companies switch to site area charging for surface water drainage, it is for companies to decide whether to make the switch and for Ofwat, as the independent economic regulator of the water industry, to approve charging schemes.
Water Supply
Martin Horwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate he has made of the volume of water lost through leakage from (a) company supply pipes and (b) piping between the water company connection point and a householder's tap in (i) 1997 and (ii) 2008. [286471]
Huw Irranca-Davies: Water companies report annual leakage figures to Ofwat as part of their annual regulatory returns. Ofwat publishes leakage performance annually in the service and delivery report.
Leakage performance for the water company distribution network excluding customer supply pipes, and for customer supply pipes only for the years 1996-97 and 2007-08 were as follows:
| Performance (megalitres/day) | ||
| 1996-97 | 2007-08 | |
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