Oliver Heald, MP for North East Herts has questioned the Defra Secretary Hilary Benn MP over the ability of the River Beane to supply extra water to local residents, in light of the Government’s proposals for housing development in the area. Oliver asked the Minister how serious his department considered the situation to be. Oliver is awaiting the written replies.
Concerned about the environmental damage the current level of demand is already causing to the Beane Valley and the Mimram , Oliver also questioned Defra chief over his plans to provide sufficient drinking water for residents, now and in the future. Oliver then invited the Minister to visit local rivers to see the severity of the situation for himself.
“I am pressing for more urgency in finding a sustainable answer to our water supply problem. With Government increasing the demand upon our already dwindling water supplies, I am deeply concerned over the impact the increased demand will have upon my constituents’ access to water and its impact upon the environmental condition of the Beane Valley and Mimram Valley and other chalk rivers locally,” commented Oliver.
Oliver has been working in partnership with local pressure groups, such as the River Beane Restoration Association, to alleviate the pressures upon this precious local resource for a number of years.
Oliver continued, “I accept that as the population grows, so will the need for more housing, but surely it would make more sense for those developments to occur where there are sufficient resources? The East of England has been classified as water stressed for years, there is more water available in Syria than East Anglia, so how they think we can cope is beyond me.”
The chalk-sourced River Beane which supplies nearby villages and the town of Stevenage, has been heavily abstracted in recent years causing the river to run dry north of Watton-at- Stone.