Office of Public Sector Information
16.—(1) If the appropriate Minister becomes aware that a local authority or private controller has failed in the local authority’s or private controller’s duties under these Regulations, the appropriate Minister may, by notice to the local authority or private controller, specify—
(a) measures to be taken by the local authority or private controller to comply with these Regulations; and
(b) the deadline by which those measures must be taken.
(2) The appropriate Minister must consider any representations received from the local authority or private controller on the notice, and may amend or withdraw the notice.
(3) If the measures specified have not been taken by the deadline specified, the appropriate Minister may—
(a) take the measures; or
(b) apply to the High Court for an order requiring the local authority or private controller to comply with these Regulations.
(4) Section 108 of the Environment Act 1995(12) (powers of enforcing authorities and persons authorised by them) has effect in relation to England and Wales as if—
(a) “pollution control functions” in relation to the Secretary of State, the Agency and the Welsh Ministers includes their respective functions under these Regulations; and
(b) the powers in paragraph (4) of that section included the power to take any measure required of a local authority or private controller under these Regulations.
(5) Section 202(2) of the Water Resources Act 1991 (information in connection with the control of pollution) has effect as if it conferred power on the Secretary of State, the Welsh Ministers and the Agency to require the furnishing of information reasonably required for the purposes of giving effect to the Bathing Water Directive.
17. The appropriate Minister may give guidance to the Agency, any local authority or any private controller with respect to the practical implementation of the Bathing Water Directive, and the person to whom guidance is given shall have regard to it.
18.—(1) In the Bathing Waters (Classification) Regulations 1991(13)—
(a) omit regulation 2(3), substitute—
“(3) The criterion for a bathing water’s achieving the classification BW1 is that at least 95% of samples of waters meet the parametric value of 2,000 per 100 millilitres for Escherichia coli.
(4) For the purposes of paragraph (3), water samples are to be taken and tested in accordance with the sampling and testing procedures set out in Part 1 of Schedule 3 to the Bathing Water Regulations 2008(14).”; and
(b) omit Schedules 1, 2 and 3.
(2) Every notice served on the Agency under section 83 of the Water Resources Act 1991 (water quality objectives) in relation to classification BW1, and every notice which has effect as if so served, has effect subject to the transitional provisions in paragraph (1).
(3) The National Rivers Authority (Bathing Waters) Directions 1992(15) have effect as if—
(a) the only entries in the Annex to Council Directive 76/160/EEC concerning the quality of bathing water(16) were intestinal enterococci or Escherichia coli; and
(b) conformity with the values which appear in column G of that Annex were met where—
(i) at least 90% of samples of waters taken and tested in accordance with these Regulations for intestinal enterococci meet the parametric value of 100 per 100 millilitres; and
(ii) at least 80% of samples of waters taken and tested in accordance with these Regulations for Escherichia coli meet the parametric value of 100 per 100 millilitres.
(4) Until the Agency classifies a bathing water under regulation 11, for the purposes of regulation 9, the Agency must, subject to the transitional provisions in this regulation, classify the bathing water by reference to whether it conforms to the values in column I or G of the Annex to Council Directive 76/160/EEC.
19.—(1) The Bathing Waters (Classification) Regulations 1991 and the Bathing Waters (Classification) (England) Regulations 2003(17) are revoked.
(2) In the Water Environment (Water Framework Directive) (England and Wales) Regulations 2003, in Schedule 2 (relevant functions), in Part 2 (subordinate instruments), omit paragraphs 11 and 26.
(3) In the Water Environment (Water Framework Directive) (Solway Tweed River Basin District) Regulations 2004, in Schedule 2 (relevant functions), in Part 2 (subordinate instruments), omit paragraphs 11 and 26.
Signed by authority of the Secretary of State
Phil Woolas
Minister of State,
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
3rd April 2008
Jane Davidson
Minister for Environment, Sustainability and Housing, one of the Welsh Ministers
16th April 2008
Regulation 2
“Body of surface water” means a discrete and significant element of surface water such as a lake, a reservoir, a stream, river or canal, part of a stream, river or canal, a transitional water or a stretch of coastal water.
“Coastal water” means surface water on the landward side of a line, every point of which is at a distance of one nautical mile on the seaward side from the nearest point of the baseline from which the breadth of territorial waters is measured(18), extending where appropriate up to the outer limit of transitional waters.
“Groundwater” means all water which is below the surface of the ground in the saturation zone and in direct contact with the ground or subsoil.
“Inland water” means all standing and flowing water on the surface of the land, and all groundwater on the landward side of the baseline from which the breadth of the territorial sea is measured.
“Lake” means a body of standing inland surface water.
“River” means a body of inland water flowing for the most part on the surface of the land but which may flow underground for part of its course.
“Surface water” means inland waters, except groundwater; transitional waters and coastal waters except in respect of chemical status for which it shall also include territorial waters.
“Transitional waters” are bodies of surface water in the vicinity of river mouths which are partly saline in character as a result of their proximity to coastal waters but which are substantially influenced by freshwater flows.
S.I. 1991/1597. Those Regulations will be revoked by regulation 19 when that regulation comes into force. Back [13]
S.I. 2008/.1097 Back [14]
Copies are available from the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs, Water Quality Division, Ergon House, Horseferry Road, London SW1P 2AL. Back [15]
OJ No L31, 5.2.1976, p 1, as amended. Back [16]
S.I. 2003/1238. Back [17]
The relevant baseline, for the purposes of this definition and the definition of “inland water”, is that from which the breadth of the territorial sea is measured and is established by section 1 of the Territorial Sea Act 1987 (c. 49) and the Territorial Waters Order in Council (1965 III, p. 6452A). Back [18]
The Bathing Water Regulations 2008