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Section 2 - Progress on River Basin Management Planning

5 River Basin Management Planning - an Overview

River basin management planning will provide an integrated ecosystem approach to managing the water resources within our River Basin Districts. A well-managed natural infrastructure underpinned by effective and efficient regulatory regimes will:

• protect the environmental quality and biodiversity of our inland and coastal waters through appropriate management of significant pressures;
• support the economic growth of our energy and production industries;
• continue to support a high standard of drinking water for consumers;
• enable Scotland's farming, fishing and forestry businesses to thrive; and
• continue to underpin our tourism and recreation industries.

The detail of how this will be achieved for individual water bodies will be set out in River Basin Management Plans ( RBMPs). The plan is a 6-yearly statement which sets out how we are meeting the requirements of the WFD, and how we are planning to continue to do so. This involves identifying risks to and pressures on the status of our water environment, and assessing how and to what extent these risks can be addressed. This will support us in the achievement of a wealthier and greener Scotland, ensuring we strike the right balance between the protection and sustainable use of our valuable natural resources.

At a strategic level, the Scottish Government has been implementing an integrated approach to developing or reviewing both policy and legislation having an impact on the water environment. With the continuing move towards the development of River Basin Management Planning, a cross-Government River Basin Management Planning Network has been established to formalise this ongoing work, with a focus on supporting the development of the RBMPs. Led by the WFD team, the Network includes key policy representatives from land-use planning, transport, energy, fisheries, enterprise, recreation and tourism, agriculture and the water industry. The aim is to provide a forum within which we can maximise the potential synergies between different policy interests and minimise any conflicts in delivering policy initiatives. Work is ongoing to develop links between river basin planning and:

• land-use planning process such as the National Planning Framework and local authority development planning;
• the proposed Great Britain Framework Strategy on Invasive Non-native Species, due for release in Spring 2008;
• regional priorities under the Scottish Rural Development Programme (2007-2014) taking into account priorities identified under river basin planning for management of 'at risk' water bodies.

Preparation of River Basin Management Plans

The first draft RBMPs will be published for consultation in December 2008 and work is ongoing to support their preparation. SEPA, in partnership with a wide range of organisations, is leading the process for producing these plans. In order to clarify the timetable for the production of the RBMPS, Scottish Ministers issued Directions to SEPA in December 2007. These can be found at:
http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2007/12/14134408/0

The RBMP process involves a number of key actions:

• Assessing pressures on water bodies and identifying those at risk of failing to meet good status (sections 6 and 8)
• Classifying the current status of water bodies (section 9)
• Setting objectives (section 10)
• Identifying programmes of measures to enable achievement of the objectives (sections 8 and 11)

The Scottish Government, via the RBMP Network, is currently considering whether any emerging issues within the RBMP might require underpinning by new legislation and/or delivery mechanisms.

To support the plan, the Scottish Government has initiated work to prepare an Impact Assessment for each draft RBMP, to enhance the understanding of the costs, benefits and implications for Scottish stakeholders. It is proposed that these will be published alongside the draft RBMPs in December 2008.

A Strategic Environmental Assessment will also accompany the River Basin Management Plan. SEPA has now prepared a scoping report setting out what this assessment will cover.

Solway Tweed RBD

Scottish Ministers are required to work collaboratively with Defra in the production of the RBMP for the Solway-Tweed RBD. To this end, joint guidance has been issued to SEPA and the Environment Agency, setting out how we expect the agencies to work together to develop the plans. Particular emphasis is on the development of co-ordinated and practical approaches to the delivery of WFD.

This joint guidance can be found at:
http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2007/12/05141702/0

6 Pressures and impacts on the water environment

Since the publication of SEPA's characterisation reports in 2005, our understanding of the pressures and resulting impacts in the Scotland RBD has improved mainly as a result of monitoring and the introduction of CAR. Furthermore, standards and classification schemes for some quality elements (e.g. nutrients) have been developed which have given us a clearer idea of those water bodies currently failing to achieve good status. This has enabled us to refine our assessment of which water bodies are at risk, and be more confident in the results of that assessment.

The focus of further characterisation has been on those water bodies identified as being 'probably at significant risk' in the 2005 characterisation reports. A greater degree of certainty regarding the status of these water bodies was required to determine whether additional measures are necessary and if so, what these would be.

The main reasons for the changes in water body risk assessments include:

• application of new ecological standards;
• development of screening and classification tools;
• information obtained from CAR applications or from other partner organisations; and
• information obtained as a result of new monitoring programmes.

In addition, changes in the magnitude or nature of pressures impacting on water bodies, the cessation of existing pressures or the awareness of new pressures may have resulted in changes to the status of a water body since 2005. Updated results have been reported in the Significant Water Management Issues reports (section 8).

Characterisation is an ongoing process and a review must be undertaken in every river basin planning cycle. Characterisation for the second cycle, which is due to be reported in 2013, will assess which water bodies may be at risk of not meeting good status by 2021. It will be possible in this second cycle to assess the outcomes of measures taken in the first cycle, and to use information obtained from the new WFD monitoring network (section 12).

SEPA's initial characterisation reports can be found from these links:

Scotland RBD:
http://www.sepa.org.uk/pdf/publications/wfd/Article_5_Scotland_River_Basin.pdf

Solway-Tweed RBD:
http://www.sepa.org.uk/pdf/publications/wfd/Article_5_Solway_Tweed.pdf

7 Drinking Water Protected Areas

As part of the overall River Basin Management Planning process we are required to identify bodies of surface and groundwater that are used to supply, or at a future date are intended to supply, drinking water of more than 10 m_ per day or serve more than 50 people, and designate them as Drinking Water Protected Areas ( DWPAs).

The characterisation process described in section 6 enabled SEPA to review and update their initial characterisation of groundwater bodies and their designated drinking water protected areas. As a result The Water Environment (Drinking Water Protected Areas) (Scotland) Order 2005 which designated a number of areas used for public water supply, brewing and bottled water was updated in December 2007.

The Water Environment (Drinking Water Protected Areas) (Scotland) Order 2007 revokes the 2005 Order and provides a 'one stop shop' for access to maps of water bodies and the designated DWPAs within the Scotland River Basin District. The 2007 Order extends the number of DWPAs so that all groundwater bodies are designated. The reason for this is that all groundwater bodies in Scotland either already supply, or at a future date are expected to supply, 10 m_ per day of drinking water as an average or serve 50 or more persons either through the public supply network or the estimated 21,000 private water supplies which are scattered across Scotland. This is seen as a sensible and proportionate approach to better protect current and future abstractions of drinking water both public and private. A similar coverage is proposed for the Solway Tweed RBD.

An exercise to review bodies of surface water will be undertaken when better information becomes available in relation to abstractions of private water supplies which are used for human consumption.

One of the objectives for DWPAs is to prevent deterioration in water quality which could affect drinking water sources. In order to achieve this objective we may need to consider establishing safeguard zones around abstractions points. However, any safeguard measures must be proportionate to the risks to and pressures around abstractions points. Equally, local authorities, as a 'responsible authority' in terms of WFD, should consider DWPAs / safeguard zones in relation to planning applications. They will also assist in the development of River Basin Management Plans.

The 2007 DWPA Order can be found at:
http://www.opsi.gov.uk/legislation/scotland/ssi2007/ssi_20070529_en_1

The associated maps can be found at:
http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Environment/Water/15561/mapdwp

8 Significant Water Management Issues reports

The WFD requires the production of an interim overview of significant water management issues within each RBD. In 2007 SEPA published for consultation the Significant Water Management Issues ( SWMI) Report for the Scotland RBD and, jointly with the Environment Agency, the SWMI Report for the Solway Tweed RBD.

The SWMI reports provide:

• a description of significant issues impacting on our water environment;
• an assessment of the risks to the water environment;
• information on available measures and the development of new measures; and
• an indication of the scale of environmental improvements that can be delivered by 2015.

The reports identify that, whilst overall the health of our water environment is generally good, 40% of water bodies in Scotland are at risk of failing good status under the WFD. The key pressures identified include:

• pollution (both point source and diffuse) from sewage or other waste waters [the water industry], agriculture, forestry, manufacturing industry, shipping, and the urban environment;
• abstraction or changes in water resources from agriculture, water industry, or hydropower;
• changes in the morphology caused by structures such as impoundments, ports, etc; and
• where invasive alien species have replaced native species in estuaries, rivers and lochs.

More importantly the reports identify measures which would address these issues and discuss problems which would constrain delivery of environmental improvements. The reports also identify gaps in the suite of measures currently available and highlight the need for new measures. This consultation document together with the consultation responses will make an important contribution to shaping the River Basin Management Plan.

The consultation continues until April 2008, when responses to the report will be gathered together and made available.

The Significant Water Management Issues reports can be found at:
http://www.sepa.org.uk/publications/wfd/index.htm

9 Environmental standards and conditions

Environmental standards are needed to define the range of environmental conditions that support healthy aquatic life in our water bodies. Standards need to be set for the concentration of pollutants, the level of flows in rivers and from lochs, and the physical structure of rivers, lochs, estuaries and coastal waters.

Such environmental standards are key to the implementation of the Directive. They help us to classify the current status of our water environment as high, good, moderate, poor or bad; they inform the setting of environmental objectives through the RBMP process; and they support the development of measures to deliver those objectives. Scientifically robust standards will be essential in setting authorisation conditions to limit the risk of deterioration of status; to make improvements; to protect the interests of other users or to retain appropriate capacity for future sustainable development.

During 2006 UKTAG (section 4) made recommendations for a first phase of environmental standards. In March 2007, after consultation, the Scottish Government published a Policy Statement covering a first phase of standards and establishing principles for SEPA's use of these standards. Subsequently, Directions were issued to SEPA setting out the formal adoption of these standards in the Scotland and Solway Tweed River Basin Districts.

UKTAG has continued to develop standards for a further suite of environmental parameters. The Scottish Government is currently preparing a consultation on the introduction of a second phase of such standards, for issue in the Spring of 2008. It is expected that this consultation will be accompanied by proposals for classifying the status of Scotland's waters.

UKTAG website:www.wfduk.org

The Policy Statement can be found at:
http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2007/03/29111642/0

Directions to SEPA - Scotland RBD
http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2007/10/02104453/0

Directions to SEPA - Solway Tweed RBD
http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2007/12/14134205/0

10 Setting objectives for the River Basin Management Plan

The key mechanism for delivering improvements to the water environment will be the river basin management planning process. The WFD specifies environmental objectives for surface waters and groundwater that Member States are expected to achieve, but also makes provision for setting alternative objectives where appropriate.

The WFD's objective setting provisions are designed to allow Member States to strike the appropriate balance between protecting and improving the water environment and ensuring sustainable uses can continue and flourish. This flexibility will enable us to identify the improvements to the water environment that it is technically feasible and proportionate to make, how and when these improvements can be made and, therefore, the objectives we expect to achieve in the period covered by the River Basin Management Plan.

After consultation, in March 2007 Ministers issued a Policy Statement setting out their aims for objective-setting within the RBMP process. SEPA is now working with partner organisations to determine appropriate objectives for the first RBMP, in line with these aims.

The Policy Statement can be found at:
http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2007/03/29111609/0

11 River Basin Management Planning - on the ground

As lead authority responsible for River Basin Management Planning, SEPA formed a National Advisory Group and a network of Area Advisory Groups in 2006. The membership of these groups is drawn from a range of organisations - both public and business sectors - which have important contributions to make to river basin management planning. An integral part of the planning process is the identification of a programme of measures to deliver the environmental objectives set out in the RBMP. SEPA's actions during 2007 focussed on working with key organisations to develop the programme of measures necessary to support the achievement of our environmental objectives.

National Advisory Group

The National Advisory Group ( NAG) demonstrated their commitment to supporting the RBMP process at a national level. Workshops were held on water pollution, water resources, morphology and invasive non-native species, where each organisation identified what actions it would take to protect or improve the water environment. This extensive list of contributions has subsequently been refined at a series of bilateral meetings. The finalised workshop report, to be available during 2008, will allow the coordination of actions across a wide range of agencies, NGO's and trade associations. This collaborative exercise represents a step-change in the way we approach the management of our water environment.

Area Advisory Groups

The network of Area Advisory Groups ( AAGs) was established to build on local knowledge and enable contributions to an integrated Plan at a local scale, to facilitate effective delivery of environmental objectives. Key outcomes of the AAGs' work in 2007 included:

• identification of those water bodies expected to reach good ecological status in the first planning cycle (2009-2015);
• identification of actions which will protect and deliver improvements to individual water bodies; and
• identification of partnership projects that could be taken forward with joint funding.

Area Advisory Group Forums

SEPA's commitment to engage with interested parties who are not members of the AAGs continued during 2007. AAG Forum events were held in all AAG areas to introduce river basin management planning and describe how interested individuals can become involved in the process.

Working in partnership - view from the whisky industry

Scotch whisky is renowned as a natural product closely tied to its environment and rural communities across Scotland. Protecting that environment, including water resources, is fundamental to ensuring the long-term sustainability of the industry.

The industry is committed to working in partnership with SEPA to achieve the best outcomes for Scotland. Distillers and SEPA are therefore working closely on a range of initiatives and are building a strong understanding of each others' concerns and requirements. Some of the activities are highlighted below:

• SEPA's senior management visited a number of whisky distilleries in October 2007 to learn more about the industry - an important water user in Scotland - and the environment in which it operates.
• The Malt Distillers Association of Scotland ( MDAS) has a well-established Environment Committee, providing an industry forum to share best practice, on which SEPA has a permanent representative. A key committee priority has been effective implementation of the Water Framework Directive. Detailed industry guidance on abstraction monitoring plans was produced, and subsequently adopted as a template for SEPA's general guide on monitoring plans, helping companies to set out proposals on the location and method of recording licensed abstractions.
• The industry has also been grateful for SEPA's recent assistance in sharing information on the specific impacts of the industry and is keen to continue to assist SEPA wherever possible in ensuring that the characterisation database is up to date.
• The industry participates in several steering groups focussing on the Water Framework Directive, including the National Advisory Group ( NAG) and SEPA's Stakeholder working groups. Scotch Whisky producers are also represented on the Area Advisory Groups where their distilleries are located.
• As part of their NAG involvement they have provided a series of strategic commitments and these will be embedded into the Industry's Environmental Strategy which is due to be launched in 2008.
• The whisky industry also agreed to several distilleries participating in pilot studies to assist SEPA in developing policy on regulation of abstractions using real installations and plant to inform the process.

12 Monitoring programmes

The WFD required a risk-based monitoring programme for the water environment to be developed by December 2006. The WEWS Act gives SEPA overall responsibility for monitoring the status of the water environment and for preparing such a monitoring programme. As reported last year, this programme was designed in conjunction with Scottish partner organisations and introduced by the required deadline.

To develop the programme, SEPA substantially revised the predecessor network to release resource for the new network, As a result of this risk assessment process, fewer sites are subject to routine monitoring but new sites have been added to assess the impact of newly regulated and diffuse pressures. During 2007 new boreholes to expand the groundwater network were drilled and new gauging stations for hydrology have been commissioned. SEPA has worked with partner organisations (Fisheries Research Service and the Environment Agency) to share monitoring data and thus increase cost-effectiveness.

Throughout 2007, SEPA has continued to work in partnership with other agencies in the UK and the Republic of Ireland to develop the new biological monitoring tools that will be needed to assess ecological quality. Several new monitoring tools have been tested or refined during 2007. As further data and expertise are available, tools will continue to be developed throughout 2008 and beyond.

The strategy used to design the monitoring network can be found at:
http://www.sepa.org.uk/wfd/monitoring/index.htm

Monitoring of drinking water sources

The Surface Water Abstraction Directive ( SWAD) set out requirements in relation to the quality of untreated surface water intended for the abstraction of drinking water. On
22 December 2007 SWAD was replaced by WFD obligations; and the monitoring provisions of SWAD are now replaced by WFD-compliant monitoring programmes intended to protect and monitor raw water abstractions of drinking water.

SEPA has been working with Scottish Water to improve its understanding of the pollution risks posed to drinking water sources. This risk assessment will allow SEPA and Scottish Water to refine the monitoring programme ensuring progressively better levels of protection for drinking water. It may be necessary to expand the monitoring network once reliable information in relation to abstractions of private water supplies becomes available from local authorities.

Where the monitoring programme identifies pollution risks, mitigation measures will be developed within the River Basin Management Plan.

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