Seòmar agus comataidhean

Issues of RAAC competence and capacity building were discussed at the RAAC Cross-Sector Working Group meeting of 22 September. Minutes from that meeting are published on The Scottish Government Website at: Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (RAAC): Cross Sector Working Group - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) .

Out with Working Group engagement, officials have reported no specific queries from organisations or local authorities on the cited topic.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-22080 on 23 October 2023. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers

As this is an operational matter for Scottish Water, I have asked its Chief Executive to respond. His response is as follows:

"Typically, monitors are designed to measure the duration of spills and not flow or volume. Scottish Water is not required to measure the volume of spills other than in a specific limited number of locations where specific equipment is in place to do this. Where Scottish Water is required to measure this, it provides data to SEPA on an annual basis.

The new Event Duration Monitors that are being installed under the improving urban waters routemap will give spill numbers and durations, and not flows or volumes."

However, it should be noted that volume data is not always meaningful as spills are dependent on factors beyond Scottish Water’s control, most notably the weather. The more important metrics are the quality of water in receiving water bodies and as the member is aware, comprehensive monitoring of water bodies is already undertaken by SEPA to assess water quality, water resources, physical condition and aquatic ecology which are combined to produce an overall classification of the water environment. 87% of Scotland’s entire water environment is assessed by SEPA as having a ‘high’ or ‘good’ classification for water quality and Scotland’s River Basin Management Plans (RBMP) have measures in place to achieve 92% ‘good’ water quality by 2027.

There is no specific qualification required to investigate and confirm the presence of RAAC in a building. The Institution of Structural Engineers note on their website that: “Identification can be undertaken by an experienced estate/ maintenance manager/ or building owner”.

It is recommended that the investigation and assessment of RAAC, once identified, should be undertaken by a suitably competent structural engineer.

Issues of RAAC competence and capacity building were discussed at the Cross-Sector Working Group meeting of 22 September. Minutes from that meeting are published on The Scottish Government Website at: Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (RAAC): Cross Sector Working Group - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) .

The Cross-Sector Working Group on RAAC remains our main forum for engagement with public sector partners and key stakeholders in the private sector. Meetings provide updates on sector progress, recent UK information and topics of interest such as RAAC identification and assessment process and a presentation and Q&A with IStructE. The minutes of the meetings of that group are published on The Scottish Government Website.

Outwith those meetings, officials will also continue to engage with sector organisations on a one-to-one basis.

The Bathing Water Directive is implemented in Scotland by the Bathing Waters (Scotland) Regulations 2008. Under these Regulations Scottish Ministers designate bathing waters where they expect a large number of people to bathe, having regard to past trends and infrastructure and facilities provided, or other measures taken to promote bathing. We have set this figure at around 150 bathers. Across Europe large numbers of bathers can range up to 300 bathers per day.

We have taken a proportionate approach to designating bathing waters and there are no plans to change it. 2023 not only sees the highest number of bathing waters ever in Scotland, but the highest number rated excellent for water quality – and a total of 98% of locations achieving a classification of sufficient or better.

The Cross-Sector Working Group on RAAC remains our main forum for engagement with key stakeholders in the private sector. The minutes of the meetings of that group are published on The Scottish Government Website.

Outwith those meetings, officials will also continue to engage with organisations on a one-to-one basis.

The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) regulates sewage discharges to the water environment under the Water Environment (Controlled Activities) (Scotland) Regulations 2011 and must consider protection of designated nature conservation areas when determining discharge standards.

As part of River Basin Management Planning, when setting objectives for protection and improvement of the water environment SEPA also considers impacts to the condition of areas protected for nature conservation. SEPA has identified 13 conservation areas in Scotland which are not at their target objective for nature conservation and a contributing factor identified is the status of the water environment. However, none of the 13 areas are failing to meet good ecological condition due to sewage discharges.

Scotland’s River Basin Management Plan sets out measures for these areas to improve the status of the water environment, which will also contribute to improving the condition of the protected nature conservation area.

I refer the member to the answer to S6W-15158 on 13 March 2023 for further information on Scottish Water’s approach to identifying locations for new CSO monitors.

All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers

I last met Scottish Water on 7 June 2023.