Spreading treated sewage effluent on land during prolonged dry weather: RPS 214
Published 15 August 2018
Applies to England
© Crown copyright 2018
This publication is licensed under the terms of the Open Government Licence v3.0 except where otherwise stated. To view this licence, visit nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3 or write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gov.uk.
Where we have identified any third party copyright information you will need to obtain permission from the copyright holders concerned.
This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/spreading-treated-sewage-effluent-on-land-during-prolonged-dry-weather-rps-214/spreading-treated-sewage-effluent-on-land-during-prolonged-dry-weather-rps-214
This RPS expired on 1 October 2018.
Spreading treated sewage effluent (TSE) on land to benefit agriculture or the environment during prolonged dry weather can reduce the demand on potable water.
You would normally need an environmental permit to spread TSE on land. However, the Environment Agency has relaxed these rules in response to the drought and prolonged dry weather in various parts of England.
If you follow the conditions in this regulatory position statement (RPS) you can spread TSE on land without:
- asking the Environment Agency to approve your risk assessment
- paying the normal deployment fee
This RPS only applies to TSE:
- used as a substitute for non-waste water
- from a waste water treatment works that normally discharges to tidal or coastal waters or to water bodies where there would be no detriment to flow if the discharge was stopped
TSE is classified as waste under European Waste Code 190899.
Conditions you must comply with
You must:
- contact your local Environment Agency office to confirm that they have declared a state of drought or prolonged dry weather before you spread TSE on land under this RPS
- apply for deployment of mobile plant for land-spreading of waste at least 3 working days before you start spreading TSE
- send the signed statement with your deployment application to confirm that your risk assessment shows your activities:
- will not endanger human health, animal health or the environment
- will not cause ponding or uncontrolled run off to ditches or water courses – you must spread TSE at a rate equal to or less than 50m3 per hectare in any one day
- will benefit agriculture or ecology
- comply with all the conditions in SR2010 No 4: mobile plant for land-spreading
- spread TSE according to the safe sludge matrix
- get any necessary approval from other regulatory bodies, such as:
TSE must not be applied on land which is:
- within 10 metres of any watercourse
- within 50 metres of any well, spring or borehole that supplies water for human consumption or food production, including private water supplies
- in a groundwater source protection zone 1 or 2
- in a groundwater safeguard zone designated for nitrate
You must not:
- cause a risk to water, air, soil, plants or animals
- cause a nuisance through noise or odours
- adversely affect the countryside or places of special interest
Enforcement
An RPS means that the Environment Agency will not normally take enforcement action against you provided:
- your activity meets the description set out in this RPS
- you comply with the conditions set out in this RPS
- your activity does not, and is not likely to, cause environmental pollution or harm human health
When to check back
This RPS expired on 1 October 2018.
Effects of drought and prolonged dry weather
Drought may cause:
- stress and failure of public and private water supplies and storage
- public water restrictions
- drought permits and orders
- stress on waterways used for navigation and recreation
- lower agricultural and horticultural crop yields
- localised spray irrigation restrictions
- localised wildfires
- short and long term habitat and wildlife impacts
Prolonged dry weather may cause:
- heightened risk of environmental damage
- risk to public and private water supplies
- increased cessation conditions and voluntary restrictions for some abstractions
- short term impacts on wildlife and habitats
Contact the Environment Agency
Contact the Environment Agency if you need help.
General enquiries
National Customer Contact Centre
PO Box 544
Rotherham
S60 1BY
Email enquiries@environment-agency.gov.uk
Telephone 03708 506 506
Telephone from outside the UK (Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm GMT) +44 (0) 114 282 5312
Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm.