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Urban Waste Water Directive - who does it affect?

Statutory water and sewerage companies, which own and operate the public sewerage system and the treatment works are affected by this directive.

The directive mainly affects the statutory water and sewerage companies since they own and operate the public sewerage system and the treatment works.

To meet the requirements of the directive the water companies have had to make a very large investment in building and improving treatment works and improving sewerage systems.

We require the water companies to monitor their own discharges for compliance with the directive standards by collecting composite samples over 24-hour periods. The self-monitoring is done to specified standards and procedures and we audit the water companies' compliance with these procedures.

Most of the industrial discharges controlled by the directive already met the treatment levels.

The directive lays down uniform emission standards, or percentage reductions in pollutant concentrations, for discharges from sewage treatment works.

It also requires that the sludge arising from the treatment of waste water is re-used whenever appropriate, and that its use or disposal minimises the risks to the environment. A different directive deals specifically with the use of sludge on agricultural land.