« Previous | Contents | Next »
Listen
3. INTRODUCTION - ENVIRONMENTAL STANDARDS AND CONDITION LIMITS
Background
The principal mechanism for delivering improvements to the water environment will be the river basin management planning process. This process will rely on the use of environmental standards and conditions to help us assess risks to the ecological quality of our water environment and to identify the scale of improvements which would be needed to bring those waters not in good condition back to good health.
The proposed environmental standards and condition limits set out in this paper are based on the best available scientific understanding of the needs of aquatic plant and animal communities. As far as available data and knowledge permit, UKTAG1 has compared and aligned the standards with the corresponding biological standards (see Section 4.5). Consequently, a failure of a standard or condition limit indicates that there is a significant risk of adverse ecological impacts.
Before making its recommendations to the UK Administrations, UKTAG submitted its proposals for stakeholder review and, where relevant, peer review. Links to information on UKTAG's recommendations and the outcome of the stakeholder reviews can be found in Section 4.
Use of proposed standards
By comparing the current condition of the water environment with the appropriate standards, SEPA can:
- assess risks to the ecological and chemical quality of the surface water environment posed by proposed abstractions, discharges and engineering works;
- determine the capacity of surface waters to accommodate additional water uses before significant adverse ecological impacts result;
- classify the current ecological and chemical status of surface waters;
- identify the causes of adverse impacts on aquatic plants and animals;
- identify the scale of improvement needed to restore the ecological and chemical status of the water environment to good health;
- prioritise remedial action; and
- assess the effectiveness of measures taken to protect and improve the water environment.
The Fisheries Research Services (" FRS"), an agency of the Scottish Government's Marine Directorate, will also adopt the relevant standards and condition limits in their regulatory activities under the Food and Environment Protection Act 1985 in respect of coastal and transitional waters.
It is important that we strike the right balance between the protection of the water environment and enabling its sustainable use. Among other things, the process of objective setting allows us to do this. For example, where it would be disproportionately expensive to achieve an environmental standard or condition limit needed to restore a water body to good ecological status or good surface water chemical status, an appropriate alternative objective may be set. Our paper " Principles for setting objectives for the River Basin Management Plan" describes this process in more detail.
« Previous | Contents | Next »