Policy and Legislation Relevant to the Conservation of Freshwater SSSIs Subject to Eutrophication

Although no legislation in England and Wales directly addresses the causes and effects of eutrophication of surface freshwaters, a wide range of laws may be applied to the reduction of nutrient inputs. Nature conservation laws are applicable, in that rivers, lakes, reservoirs and canals designated as 'sites of special scientific interest'(SSSIs) are theoretically safeguarded from degradation. However, the SSSI system is not designed to protect water quality at the catchment level. Since intensive agricultural practices are responsible for significant nutrient losses, legislation aimed at extensification is also relevant. Increasingly, laws related to extensification of agriculture include environmental imperatives - a trend which will inevitably extend to nutrient conservation. Basically, enrichment is a water-quality issue, but policy and legislation in this area are not yet sufficiently developed to address the problem comprehensively. Existing regulatory systems for water quality carry the potential to work comparatively well for point sources, but appear ineffective in dealing with diffuse losses.