Nutrient Neutrality and the planning system

Following the Spring Budget 2023, Government announced a new Local Nutrient Mitigation Fund to enable and accelerate the delivery of projects providing nutrient mitigation to support sustainable development.

In December 2023, eight catchments were awarded grant funding to deliver high quality, locally-led nutrient mitigation schemes. The catchments included River Camel, Poole Harbour, Solent and River Itchen, River Lugg (sub-catchment of the River Wye), Stodmarsh, Norfolk Broads, Somerset Levels and River Avon . 

Round 2 of the Local Nutrient Mitigation Fund was launched in April 2024 and allocations made in October 2024. A further £47m was released to help local authorities mitigate nutrient pollution in waterways. New catchments that have now released funding include River Axe, River Wye, River Mease, River Lambourn, River Eden, River Derwent, Bassenthwaite Lake, River Kent and Esthwaite Water Catchment. 

Further information is available at gov.uk.

The Planning and Infrastructure Act received Royal Assent on 18th December 2025. Part 3 of the Planning and Infrastructure Bill focuses on development and nature recovery, introducing a system of Environmental Delivery Plans (EDPs) and a Nature Restoration Fund (NRF) to streamline environmental obligations for developers. These changes aim to improve environmental outcomes while speeding up housing and infrastructure development. The Nature Restoration Fund: Implementation plan sets out how government will deliver the NRF now that its legislative framework is in place. It explains how Environmental Delivery Plans (EDPs) will work in practice, outlines the implementation timeline, and details plans for the first EDPs to be developed by Natural England covering nutrient pollution. Further information is available on our EDP webpage.

The Levelling Up and Regeneration Act 2023 (LURA) amends the Water Industry Act 1991 to apply nutrient pollution standards to wastewater treatment works (WwTWs). The standards apply in England only and relate to discharges of treated effluent into areas which are nitrogen and phosphorus sensitive areas. 

In May 2024, the Secretary of State, in accordance with the power in Section 96C of the Water Industry Act 1991 to designate catchment areas as sensitive for phosphorus or nitrogen where a habitats site is wholly or partly in England is considered in an unfavourable condition by virtue of pollution from nutrients in water from one or both of those nutrients.

The designation cannot be revoked, meaning that even if the area is no longer considered to be in an unfavourable condition by virtue of nitrogen or phosphorus pollution from nutrients in water, it will still be considered a sensitive catchment area and protected as such. 

The effect of this notice is that within these areas, water companies must guarantee that wastewater treatment works serving a population equivalent to more than 2,000 meet specified nutrient removal standards by 1 April 2030.

Local planning authorities, when considering applications for development drained via sewer to a wastewater treatment that must upgrade, will need to 'consider that the nutrient pollution standard will be met by the upgrade date for the purposes of Habitats Regulations Assessments'.

Natural England has updated the nutrient neutrality calculators for the affected catchments. 

In 2023, Natural England launched a nutrient mitigation scheme to help deliver nutrient mitigation solutions in affected catchments such as the Tees catchment and Poole Harbour. Developers can apply for mitigation credits in these catchments. 

Since June, we have been hosting a monthly network for all 27 catchment lead officers. Alongside national updates and the opportunity to engage collectively with Government, statutory agencies, and other national stakeholders, these meetings are also a great way for catchments to talk to each other to share concerns, experiences and good practice.

The network also supports the eight catchments that received funding from the Local Nutrient Mitigation Grant Round 1 with monthly meetings. 

Importantly the advice applies to catchments - here is our first attempt to map them.