DEFRA IN THE DOCK
“Almost all our rivers are poor when it comes to water quality...”
IT’S GOOD to see the bods at Fish Legal baring their teeth as and when needed.
Their most recent high-profile case involves both Defra and the Environment Agency and relates to a continued failure by the Government to protect our rivers, a responsibility they are obliged to carry out by law. Sadly, they don’t always achieve it.
A lot of people think angling’s governing body is reluctant to take on the EA, but that’s simply not the case. Fish Legal, the Angling Trust and its partner the WWF are joining together to drag the EA and Defra back to court following a case that was supposed to have been settled ages ago. The long and short of it is that back in 2015 Defra and the EA were taken to court because of a failure to act on the continued pollution of a number of rivers. The case was settled by a court order, following which the EA promised to come up with plans to protect 37 sites from future problems.
Six years on and only four have been completed, meaning that potential pollutions can carry on unchecked. Quite frankly, that’s shocking!
What is the point of a court order if it’s ignored? Is it lip service to the court, an inability to act, or a blatant disregard for the environment?
Almost all our rivers are poor when it comes to water quality, and it’s about time that those in power stepped up and took their responsibilities seriously.
Let’s hope that this time around they will take heed of the legal process and spend our money doing what they are supposed to be doing, as opposed to wasting it on legal fees defending what is seemingly indefensible.