EU targets ‘must not hinder regeneration’

NEW European standards which demand major improvements in rivers must not stand in the way of regeneration, a council has warned.

More than two-thirds of rivers in the Hull area are failing to meet the Water Framework Directive, which requires all rivers to reach “good ecological” status or good “ecological potential” by 2027. Currently just 16 per cent make the grade.

In Hull and East Riding the top reason for failure is “physical modification” of watercourses, including the building of land drains over the centuries to take water from low-lying agricultural areas to the north of the city. But the area is also hugely reliant on drainage and flood protection.

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A report being discussed by councillors in Hull next week says it is essential that EU objectives “do not hinder the delivery of much-needed regeneration within Hull and the Humber”.

It adds: “It remains essential that these water bodies fulfil their primary function of land drainage and flood protection in a way that enables investment and development within the city. It is the lifting of income levels that in turn is likely to have an impact on how people and business respond to the quality of the water environment.”

The report also complains that a consultation led by the Environment Agency only gives a “very limited” understanding of how they’ve assessed watercourses, as their work has been “carried out largely in private.”

Programme manager Jeff Pacey said: “The regulations allow certain rivers to have a primary use for man, but we do have to mitigate against the adverse effect they cause. What we are trying to do is look for ways we can restore life in rivers and reduce flooding. That’s the way forward.”

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He added: “We were set an enormous challenge to work out for nearly every stretch of river, what it was failing for and what we thought the cause of failure was. Perhaps we didn’t engage well enough in involving other people in that process.”