The Water Environment (Water Framework Directive) (England and Wales) Regulations 2003 (revoked)

Interpretation U.K.

2.—(1) In these Regulations—

“the Agency” means the Environment Agency;

[F1 “the appropriate agency” [F2 , except as provided for by regulation 7A(8),] means—

(a)

in relation to a river basin district that is wholly in England, the Agency;

(b)

in relation to a river basin district that is wholly in Wales, the NRBW; and

(c)

in relation to a river basin district that is partly in England and partly in Wales, the Agency and the NRBW acting jointly;]

“the appropriate authority” [F3 , except as provided for by regulation 7A(8),] means—

(a)

in relation to a river basin district that is wholly in England, the Secretary of State;

(b)

in relation to a river basin district that is wholly in Wales, the Assembly; and

(c)

in relation to a river basin district that is partly in England and partly in Wales, the Secretary of State and the Assembly acting jointly;

F4 ...

“body of water” means a body of groundwater or a body of surface water;

[F5 “the Directive” means Directive 2000/60/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23rd October 2000 establishing a framework for Community action in the field of water policy(1);]

“England” includes the territorial sea adjacent to England not forming any part of Wales;

[F6 “environmental objectives”, in relation to a river basin district, means—

(a)

the objectives required to comply with Article 4 of the Directive (environmental objectives) including any objectives required to comply with Article 7(2) and (3) of the Directive (waters used for the abstraction of drinking water), and the EQS Directive; and

(b)

in relation to a shellfish water protected area, without prejudice to the objectives under paragraph (a) for the river basin district in which the shellfish water protected area is situated, the water quality objectives necessary or desirable to improve or protect that shellfish water protected area in order to support shellfish life and growth and to contribute to the high quality of shellfish products suitable for human consumption;]

[F7 “the EQS Directive” means Directive 2008/105/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council on environmental quality standards in the field of water policy(2);]

[F7 “existing obligations” means the obligations (on environmental quality standards in the field of water policy) under Directive 2008/105/EC (“the original Directive”) before it was amended by Directive 2013/39/EU including, in particular, the achievement of good surface water chemical status in relation to the substances and the associated environmental quality standards listed in the original Directive;]

[F1 “the NRBW” means the Natural Resources Body for Wales;]

“programme of measures”, in relation to a river basin district, means the programme of measures required to comply with Article 11(2) to (6) of the Directive (programme of measures);

“public body” does not include a Minister of the Crown within the meaning of the Ministers of the Crown Act 1975(2)[F8 , the Welsh Ministers, the First Minister for Wales or the Counsel General to the Welsh Government], but it does include—

(a)

a person otherwise holding an office—

(i)

under the Crown;

(ii)

created or continued in existence by public general Act of Parliament; or

(iii)

the remuneration in respect of which is paid out of money provided by Parliament; and

(b)

a statutory undertaker (being a person who by virtue of section 262 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990(3) is, or is deemed to be, a statutory undertaker for any purpose);

“river basin district” means an area identified by regulation 4(1), being the main unit for the management of river basins for the purposes of the Directive and being made up of a river basin or neighbouring river basins, together with associated groundwater, transitional waters and coastal water; and

[F9 “shellfish” means any bivalve or gastropod mollusc;]

[F9 “shellfish water objectives” means the objectives referred to in paragraph (b) of the definition of environmental objectives;]

[F9 “shellfish water protected area” means an area of water designated under regulation 7A(1);]

[F7 “the table of priority substances” means the table in Part A of Annex I to the EQS Directive;]

“Wales” has the meaning given by section 155 of the Government of Wales Act 1998(4).

[F10 (1A) In these regulations, where the appropriate agency is required to make copies of a [F11 list,] statement, summary, draft plan or plan (including an approved or revised plan) accessible to the public free of charge, references to doing so through its website mean—

(a) where the NRBW is the appropriate agency, through its website;

(b) where the Agency is the appropriate agency, through its website;

(c) where the Agency and the NRBW acting jointly are the appropriate agency, through their respective websites.]

[F10 (1B) In these regulations, where the appropriate agency is required to make copies of a [F12 list,] statement, summary, draft plan or plan (including an approved or revised plan) accessible to the public free of charge, references to doing so at its principal office F13 ... mean—

(a) where the NRBW is the appropriate agency, at its principal office F14 ...;

(b) where the Agency is the appropriate agency, at its principal offices F15 ...;

(c) where the Agency and the NRBW acting jointly are the appropriate agency, at their principal officesF16 ....]

(2) Any expression used in both these Regulations and the Directive and not otherwise defined in these Regulations has the same meaning for the purposes of these Regulations as it has for the purposes of the Directive, and the definitions contained in the Directive of expressions used in these Regulations are set out in Schedule 1 (references in those definitions to an Annex or an Article being to an Annex to, or an Article of, the Directive).

Textual Amendments

F1 Words in reg. 2(1) inserted (1.4.2013) by The Natural Resources Body for Wales (Functions) Order 2013 (S.I. 2013/755), art. 1(2), Sch. 4 para. 174(2) (with Sch. 7)

F2 Words in reg. 2(1) inserted (3.3.2016) by The Water Environment (Water Framework Directive) (England and Wales) (Amendment) Regulations 2016 (S.I. 2016/138), regs. 1(c), 3(1)(a)

F3 Words in reg. 2(1) inserted (3.3.2016) by The Water Environment (Water Framework Directive) (England and Wales) (Amendment) Regulations 2016 (S.I. 2016/138), regs. 1(c), 3(1)(b)

F4 Words in reg. 2(1) omitted (14.9.2015) by virtue of The Water Environment (Water Framework Directive) (England and Wales) (Amendment) Regulations 2015 (S.I. 2015/1623), regs. 1, 3(1)(a)

F5 Words in reg. 2(1) substituted (14.9.2015) by The Water Environment (Water Framework Directive) (England and Wales) (Amendment) Regulations 2015 (S.I. 2015/1623), regs. 1, 3(1)(b)

F6 Words in reg. 2(1) substituted (3.3.2016) by The Water Environment (Water Framework Directive) (England and Wales) (Amendment) Regulations 2016 (S.I. 2016/138), regs. 1(c), 3(1)(c)

F7 Words in reg. 2(1) inserted (14.9.2015) by The Water Environment (Water Framework Directive) (England and Wales) (Amendment) Regulations 2015 (S.I. 2015/1623), regs. 1, 3(1)(e)

F8 Words in reg. 2(1) substituted (14.9.2015) by The Water Environment (Water Framework Directive) (England and Wales) (Amendment) Regulations 2015 (S.I. 2015/1623), regs. 1, 3(1)(d)

F9 Words in reg. 2(1) inserted (3.3.2016) by The Water Environment (Water Framework Directive) (England and Wales) (Amendment) Regulations 2016 (S.I. 2016/138), regs. 1(c), 3(1)(d)

F10 Reg. 2(1A)(1B) inserted (1.4.2013) by The Natural Resources Body for Wales (Functions) Order 2013 (S.I. 2013/755), art. 1(2), Sch. 4 para. 174(3) (with Sch. 7)

F11 Word in reg. 2(1A) inserted (3.3.2016) by The Water Environment (Water Framework Directive) (England and Wales) (Amendment) Regulations 2016 (S.I. 2016/138), regs. 1(c), 3(2)

F12 Word in reg. 2(1B) inserted (3.3.2016) by The Water Environment (Water Framework Directive) (England and Wales) (Amendment) Regulations 2016 (S.I. 2016/138), regs. 1(c), 3(3)

F13 Words in reg. 2(1B) omitted (14.9.2015) by virtue of The Water Environment (Water Framework Directive) (England and Wales) (Amendment) Regulations 2015 (S.I. 2015/1623), regs. 1, 3(2)(a)

F14 Words in reg. 2(1B)(a) omitted (14.9.2015) by virtue of The Water Environment (Water Framework Directive) (England and Wales) (Amendment) Regulations 2015 (S.I. 2015/1623), regs. 1, 3(2)(a)

F15 Words in reg. 2(1B)(b) omitted (14.9.2015) by virtue of The Water Environment (Water Framework Directive) (England and Wales) (Amendment) Regulations 2015 (S.I. 2015/1623), regs. 1, 3(2)(a)

F16 Words in reg. 2(1B)(c) omitted (14.9.2015) by virtue of The Water Environment (Water Framework Directive) (England and Wales) (Amendment) Regulations 2015 (S.I. 2015/1623), regs. 1, 3(2)(b)

Modifications etc. (not altering text)

C1 Reg. 2 applied (with modifications) (2.1.2004) by The Water Environment (Water Framework Directive) (Northumbria River Basin District) Regulations 2003 (S.I. 2003/3245), regs. 1(1), 5(1)(2) (as amended (3.3.2016) by The Water Environment (Water Framework Directive) (Northumbria and Solway Tweed River Basin Districts) (Amendment) Regulations 2016 (S.I. 2016/139), reg. 1(2), Sch. 1 para. 4)

(1)

O.J. No. L327, 22.12.2000, p. 1; amended by Decision 2455/2001/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20th November 2001 establishing the list of priority substances in the field of water policy and amending Directive 2000/60/EC (O.J. No. L331, 15.12.2001, p. 1).

(2)

1975 c. 26.

(3)

1990 c. 8; section 262 was amended by the Gas Act 1995 (c. 45), section 16(1) and Schedule 4, paragraph 18(2), S.I. 1996/593 and the Transport Act 2000 (c. 38), section 37 and Schedule 5, paragraph 6.

(4)

1998 c. 38. By virtue of article 6 of the National Assembly for Wales (Transfer of Functions) Order 1999 (S.I. 1999/672), the boundary between those parts of the sea within the Severn and Dee estuaries which are to be treated as adjacent to Wales and those which are not is the line connecting the coordinates set out in Schedule 3 to that Order.