Liquid waste charge exemption (FOI)

​Request

Regarding the Water Pollution (Jersey) Law 2000.

A

With charges for liquid waste likely to be applied to businesses and households at sometime in the near future, will the Department of Infrastructure honour the pledge made in 2000 to exempt owners of septic tanks registered under that law before 3 December 2000 from any charges for discharge in the future?

B

How many households and businesses are there on the register that had completed registration before 3 December 2000?

Response

A

Charges for discharge permits

The charges that the Department for Infrastructure are proposing to introduce are separate from any charge for discharge permits for the prevention of pollution which is administered by the Department of the Environment (DoE).

The DoE is responsible for the administration of the Water Pollution (Jersey) Law, 2000. This Law included transitional provisions that no charge be levied for discharge permits at that time. The DoE is not considering introducing a charge for domestic discharge permits at this stage.

Charges for non-householder (commercial) liquid waste

The Department for Infrastructure was asked to work on introducing a liquid waste charge for non-householders (commercial) as part of the Medium Term Financial Plan that was agreed in September 2016. The introduction of any new charges will be subject to a debate in the States Assembly in 2017. The proposed charges will not impact directly on household customers, the liquid waste services that they receive will continue to be funded in the same way as they are now.

B

There were 199 deemed business discharge permits and 321 deemed domestic discharge permits issued under the transitional arrangements of the Water Pollution (Jersey) Law 2000.