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Draft SEA Determination and Screening Statement March 2021

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Draft SEA Determination and Screening Statement March 2021 Our Dry Weather Plan South East Water’s 2021 draft drought plan Appendix H: Draft SEA determination and Screening Statement March 2021 South East Water Rocfort Road Snodland Kent ME6 5AH Draft SEA determination and Screening Statement | 2021 Contents 1. Introduction 4 2. The Drought Plan and SEA 5 2.1 Background on water resource planning and the Drought Plan 5 2.2 SEA Regulations 7 2.3 The need for SEA of the Drought Plan 7 3. SEA screening assessment 10 3.1 Description of Drought Plan actions 10 3.1.1 Timing of actions 12 3.2 SEA screening methodology 12 3.2.1 Initial consideration 13 3.2.2 Screening assessment 13 3.2.3 Evidence base 13 3.3 Consideration of SEA topics 14 3.4 Supporting environmental assessments 17 3.5 Screening assessment: demand side actions 17 3.6 Screening assessment: supply side actions 18 3.6.1 Surface water options 21 3.6.2 River Ouse (winter period) drought permit/order 21 3.6.3 River Ouse (summer period) drought permit/order 25 3.6.4 River Cuckmere (winter period) drought permit/order 30 3.6.5 Groundwater options 33 3.6.6 Chasewood drought permit/order 34 3.6.7 Southlands and Oaklands drought permit/order 35 3.6.8 Balcombe drought permit/order 37 3.6.9 Hackenden drought permit/order 39 3.6.10 Halling No.8 drought permit/order 40 3.7 Screening assessment summary 43 3.8 Cumulative effects 43 4. Conclusions 46 References 50 Page 2 of 59 Draft SEA determination and Screening Statement | 2021 Appendix A: Figures 51 Role/Task Person/Date Data item/measure producer Emma Mungo Jacobs Data item checker Ros Vincent Jacobs Data item reviewer Sam Pottier South East Water Jon Barnes Jacobs Sign off / approval Lee Dance (incl by who and when) South East Water 26 March 2021 Greg Tate Jacobs 26 March 2021 Page 3 of 59 1. Introduction This draft Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) determination and screening statement sets out the basis for considering the requirement for undertaking SEA of South East Water’s (SEW) draft Drought Plan 2021. The draft Drought Plan 2021 is based on the published 2019 Drought Plan and includes minor updates to this plan. This report is structured as follows: Section 2 sets out the regulatory requirements and recently published guidelines and how these are considered in terms of how they are applicable to the draft Drought Plan 2021. The general nature of the plan is outlined and the plan is taken through the SEA screening decision points and the screening criteria are set out. Section 3 describes the specific proposals in the draft Drought Plan relevant for consideration and the SEA screening methodology and covers: focusing the screening assessment considering the proposed Drought Plan actions and the relevant SEA topic areas in terms of identifying potential for significant effects and need for screening assessment screening for each individual action based on a review of information available, including results from monitoring and specific action environmental assessments undertaken to identify potential impacts and consider the mitigation measures required and likelihood of significant adverse environmental effects assessment of in-combination and cumulative effects of the actions to determine if these could result in significant adverse environmental effects. Section 4 summaries the assessment findings and sets out the overall conclusions against the screening criteria. Additional measures for inclusion in the Drought Plan are identified and the draft determination and screening statement on the requirement for SEA is provided. 4 2. The Drought Plan and SEA 2.1 Background on water resource planning and the Drought Plan We have set out the overarching aim underpinning our water resource planning as: “To provide today’s public water service and create tomorrow’s water supply solutions, fairly and responsibly, working with others to help society and the environment to thrive.” This purpose guides all our actions and decisions alongside our statutory duty to provide water for customers. In doing so we must make sure we have a robust system to ensure water resources are managed efficiently and effectively to meet the needs of our customers. Our overall approach to managing water resources is set out in our water resources management plan 2019 (WRMP19), approved by Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) in August 2019. The WRMP19 sets out our plans to provide a secure supply for customers from 2020 to 2080. The water resource management plans have a five year cycle and the next WRMP will be produced in 2024. While the WRMP19 and future WRMPs aim to address long-term water demand, we know that different weather patterns may lead to a short-term supply demand challenge. This could be through a shortage of rainfall, or heatwave conditions, both of which can impact the availability of water, or the demand for water. As a responsible business it is important we are prepared for these challenges. A dry weather and drought plan is therefore prepared as an operational guide. It builds on our last drought plan published in 2019. In preparing this we have taken into account applicable new statutory requirements including the Water Company Drought Plan guideline, December 2020 (Version 1.2)1 and the Environment Agency 2017 National Framework for Drought.2 Figure 2.1 shows the flow of the overall tactical plan with the sequence of key elements which will form our dry weather and drought plan. 1 Environment Agency (2020). Water Company Drought Plan guideline, December 2020 (Version 1.2). 2 Environment Agency (2017). National Framework for Drought. 5 Figure 2.1: Key elements of each section of the proposed 2021 draft drought plan TACTICAL PLAN INTRODUCTION ENGAGEMENT TRIGGERS ACTIONS COMMUNICATIONS ENVIRONMENT END OF ADDITIONAL DROUGHT INFORMATION Area of severe Customers & Drought levels Agile plan Agile communications Responsibility to Review scale of Drought water stress stakeholders protect & environmental Management enhance impact & actions Team environment Meet customer Statutory & non- Groundwater & Target most Drought Environment Stop actions that Agreements and needs statutory reservoir at-risk Communications Plan Agency Drought have greatest Arrangements consultees levels, recharge resources Planning impact first & demand guidance Protect Environmental Red, Amber, Reduce High- profile media Environmental Monitor resources Regional environment Scrutiny Group Green system demand campaign assessments Collaboration Links to longer- Regional 22 trigger sites Supply side Encourage water Heritage Some actions to Alignment with term water collaboration Actions efficiency Environmental remain until Environment resources plans Records conditions are Agency local normal area drought plans Easy to follow Staff workshops Drought matrix Drought Change customer Monitor and Environmental Links with plan assessment Permits & behaviour measure impact monitoring WRMP19 and Drought & assessment WRMP24 Orders Regulatory Trade Override trigger Temporary National Drought Baseline Communications Links with other requirements organisations for bulk supplies Use Bans & Group monitoring and & consultation plans Non mitigation continue Essential Use Bans Feedback Communities Drought Inter- Partnerships and joint Conservation Internal review Compensation welcome! modelling & company messaging legislation & arrangements testing transfers regulations Communications Multi-sector Monitoring and Post drought Lessons learnt strategy solutions evaluation monitoring & & update plans restoration 6 2.2 SEA Regulations SEA is a statutory requirement in the UK following the adoption of Directive 2001/42/EC (the SEA Directive) on the assessment of effects of certain plans and programmes on the environment. The Directive was transposed into national legislation by The Environmental Assessment of Plans and Programmes Regulations 2004 (referred to as the SEA Regulations)3. The range of environmental and social issues to be included in an SEA is set out in the SEA Regulations, and includes biodiversity, population, human health, fauna, flora, soil, water, air, climatic factors, material assets, cultural heritage, and landscape. 2.3 The need for SEA of the Drought Plan Government SEA guidance sets out the stages of the SEA process4. The water industry (UKWIR) guidance on environmental assessment for WRMPs and Drought Plans was published in 2021 and covers the process for determining the requirement for SEA5 and includes guidance on screening drought plans for SEA. The latest Drought Plan Guideline (2020) also includes recommendations for the application of SEA to water company drought plans. These guidance documents and regulations have all informed the consideration of the requirement for SEA for our Draft Drought Plan 2021. The Drought Plan is a statutory plan with a formal adoption process and is therefore a qualifying plan under the SEA regulations. The key questions for screening as set out in the ODPM guide are ‘’Article 3(2) which makes SEA mandatory for plans and programmes: a) which are prepared for agriculture, forestry, fisheries, energy, industry, transport, waste management, water management, telecommunications, tourism, town and country planning or land use and which set the framework for future development consent for projects listed in Annexes I and II to the Environmental Impact assessment (EIA) Directive (85/337/EEC); or b) which, in view of the likely effect on sites, have been determined to require an assessment pursuant to Article 6 or 7 of the Habitats Directive (92/43/EEC). Habitat
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