Recommendation 107

In some instances, the actions and advice of Natural England and the Environment Agency appear to contradict each other. The Environment Agency is responsible for granting water abstraction licences and is the competent authority for ensuring that they will not cause significant harm to protected areas. 145 Natural England has advised the local planning authorities in the Sussex North Water Resource Zone that new development should not be permitted unless it can be proven not to inflict harm on protected areas through increased water abstraction. Despite Natural England’s assertion that additional water abstraction risks the condition of protected areas, the Environment Agency has not amended abstraction licences (as has been the case with a similar issue in Cambridgeshire). 146 It is unclear why Natural England and the Environment Agency take different views on the risks to these protected sites and why Natural England is advising a halt in all development while the Environment Agency continues to allow potentially harmful water abstraction. 147