To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Holborn and St. Pancras (Mr. Dobson) of 26 January, Official Report, columns 408–12, on infringements, prosecutions, offences and pollution incidents in the water industry, if he will update the information provided. [40409]

As a result of the 1995 technical audits of water companies, the drinking water inspectorate considered taking enforcement action against water companies in England and Wales in 146 instances. This was a reduction on previous years.Thames Water Utilities Ltd. pleaded guilty at Kingston crown court on 31 July 1996 to four charges under section 70 of the Water Industry Act 1991 for the offence of supplying water unfit for human consumption and was fined £80,000 plus costs of £9,800. The prosecution was brought following an investigation by the drinking water inspectorate of an incident in which 84,300 consumers in parts of Tooting, Wandsworth and Wimbledon were supplied with dirty water.The tables show the information on water pollution and water abstraction infringements and prosecutions, for incidents where prosecution took place after 26 January 1996. In all cases convictions were made.

Water pollution offences
Company/date of infringement	Date of prosecution
North West
06.05.95	07.03.96
Southern
12.09.95	20.02.96
01.11.95	14.03.96
20.08.95	19.03.96
30.10.05	19.06.96
22.11.95	19.6.96
06.08.95	31.07.96
12.11.95	01.08.96

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what assessment he has made of the reasons for which prosecuting authorities have withdrawn prosecutions of alleged polluters of water resources since the Water Resources Act 1991 came into force. [40375]

Prosecution in relation to water resources pollution offences is a matter for the Environment Agency.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what meetings he has held with (a) the (i) chairman and (ii) chief executive of the Environment Agency and (b) the director of the drinking water inspectorate since the Environment Act 1995 came into force to discuss how effective the prosecution measures available to the responsible authorities in regard to water pollution incidents have proved to date. [40395]

There have been no specific discussions with my right hon. Friend of these issuers. Pollution control policies and their effectiveness frequently figure in discussion between the Department and the agency. The Environment Agency is developing policies on enforcement and prosecution following, amongst other things, the changes made by the Environment Act 1995 on the use in legal proceedings of evidence from samples.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will make a statement on the outcome of the consultation on the water control of pollution regulations. [40406]

A total of 27 responses have been made to the Department's consultation paper "Water: Control of Pollution Regulations" issued on 22 August. The regulations will be made shortly.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what monitoring is conducted (i) by his Department and (ii) on behalf of his Department and agencies which report to his Department on the effects of the concentration of copper deposits in drinking water supplies dormant for periods of over six hours. [40474]

The Water Supply (Water Quality) Regulations 1989 require water companies to take a specified number of samples for analysis for copper each year from consumers' taps in randomly selected properties in each of their water supply zones. The specified number is between one and 24 samples per year depending on the size of the zone. The samples collected are the first litre of water drawn off by the sampler. This water will have been in contact with any pipework, including copper pipework, for varying periods including up to six hours and possibly more.The results are provided annually to, and are audited by, the drinking water inspectorate. In 1995 the 31 water companies in England and Wales analysed 10,616 samples for copper. All samples were within the standard in the regulations of 3,000 micrograms per litre.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list each occasion, specifying dates and locations, on which cryptosporidium has been reported in domestic water supplies in the last five years. [40346]

The water companies in England and Wales are required to report all incidents in which water quality might be affected. On cryptosporidium the notification can relate to either the detection of cryptosporidium oocysts in treated water, or to an increase of the illness cryptosporidiosis in the community, or both. The transmission of the illness occurs in a number of ways and often through contact with animals. One recent outbreak of cryptosporidiosis was found to be associated with the failure of a milk pasteurisation plant.All incidents are investigated fully by the drinking water inspectorate. As cryptosporidiosis can be transmitted in many ways, the source of any outbreak has to be established through epidemiology. A case of South West Water Services Ltd. allegedly supplying water unfit for human consumption because of cryptosporidium is currently before the courts.Notifications of events involving cryptosporidium are listed below under four headings. It should be noted that not all notifications become confirmed as incidents.

Cryptosporidium oocysts detected in treated water but no reported increase of cryptosporidiosis in the community
Water company area	Date	Location
Yorkshire Water	19 December1991	Redmires
Southern Water	19 March 1992	Broadfields Water Treatment Works (WTW)
Severn Trent Water	20 August 1992	Fairholmes WTW
Southern Water	8 September 1992	Steyning WTW
Southern Water	22 October 1992	Testwood WTW
South West Water	29 December 1992	Broomhill WTW
Yorkshire Water	5 January 1995	Huby WTW
Yorkshire Water	16 March 1995	Fixby WTW
Essex and Suffolk	30 March 1995	Ormsby WTW
Yorkshire Water	31 August 1995	Cottingham adit
Yorkshire Water	13 September 1995	Kepwick Springs WTW (in raw water)
South West Water	13 September 1995	Parracombe WTW
Yorkshire Water	15 January 1996	Kepwick Springs WTW
Cambridge Water	30 May 1996	Duxford/Linton
Mid Kent Water	3 July 1996	Burham WTW
Southern Water	3 July 1996	Burham WTW

An increase in cryptosporidiosis in the community but oocysts not detected in treated water
Water company area	Date	Location
Southern Water	28 December1990	Thanet area
North West Water	5 May 1992	West Cumbria
North West Water	27 March 1992	Barrow-in-Furness
North West Water	14 December 1992	Warrington
Northumbrian	15 June 1993	Sherburn
North West	1 April 94	Chorley

Both oocysts detected in treated water an increase of cryptosporidiosos in the community
Water company area	Date	Location
Yorkshire Water	13 November 1992	Bingley and Shipley
South West Water	12 August 1995	Torbay/ Littlehempston

Incidents still under investigation
Water company area	Date	Location
Wessex Water	April 1993	Poole
Yorkshire Water	11 June 1993	Gilstead
Yorkshire Water	5 January 1996	Elvington WTW
Yorkshire Water	10 January 1996	Elvington WTW
North East	25 January 1996	Sunderland
Yorkshire Water	21 March 1996	Tophill
North West Water	29 April 1996	The Wirral
South West Water	29 May 1996	Littlehempston
South West Water	27 June 1996	Crown Hill WTW

To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how many water pollution incidents in the categories used by the Environment Agency, comprising (a) major, (b) significant, (c) minor and (d) unsubstantiated have taken place each year since the Water Resources Act 1991 came into force; and what remedial action has been taken to clean up contaminated water sources. [40376]

The number of reported water pollution incidents in each year since the Water Resources Act, broken down into major, significant, minor and unsubstantiated are as follows:

	1992	1993	1994	1995
Major	388	331	229	199
Significant	122,943	6,768	6,567	2,194
Minor		18,200	18,619	21,070
Unsubstantiated	8,342	8,997	9,876	12,427
1 The figures for this year are not broken down into "significant" and "minor" incidents.

The classification system used by the National Rivers Authority and now the Environment Agency changed during the period since 1991. In particular "unsubstantiated" incidents were only specifically recorded after 1 January 1995. For previous years the figures are inferred.The agency is concerned wherever possible to prevent pollution from occurring, using enforcement powers, advice and targeted campaigns to do so. The oil care campaign launched in 1995 has, for example, been successful in reducing the number of oil pollution incidents for the first time since 1991. Remedial action is determined on a case by case basis. The agency has powers to recover costs from polluters for such actions and will, following the introduction of new powers in the Environment Act 1995, be able to require a polluter or potential polluter to clean up or take action to prevent an incident.