In March 2022, Natural England passed legislation which effectively prevented local planning departments within Norfolk approving planning applications in certain areas unless the developer (this can be anyone looking to add an extension to their home through to a national house builder) could prove that the proposed development does not add further pollution to the water catchment of the Norfolk Rivers, primarily The Bure, The Wensum and the Yare. At the time this had a major effect on development of any kind in Norfolk and most of it came to a standstill. The aim of the scheme is to improve and reduce nutrient export which in turn will improve water quality, water resource usage and habitat creation.

The scheme involves a number of bodies including Natural England, Norfolk Rivers Consortium, Harrison Civils and the four local authorities, North Norfolk, South Norfolk, Breckland and Broadland District Council. Those four local authorities have formed a partnership call Norfolk Environmental Credits under which they operate the scheme with us. The attached letter from Norfolk Environmental Credits describes how the partnership with us ( Norfolk Rivers Consortium ) works.

We don’t hide the fact that a substantial job such as installing a sewage treatment plant does not come without cost. However the important bit for you is that you, as the homeowner does not have to pay. Please also see the additional "Costs" section of the FAQ's

When developers within Norfolk want to build properties they have to show that they are not increasing the pollution within the three main rivers, The Wensum, The Bure and The Yare. There are many ways they can do this, but one of them is by helping other homeowners within that same catchment area improve their situation, i.e. by replacing their septic tank with more efficient sewage treatment plants. In essence therefore, developers within Norfolk are ultimately funding the scheme. (A definition of a developer can include anyone from a homeowner wanting to extend their property up to a national house builder)

In proceeding with the scheme the current owner and any future owner are then bound by a unilateral undertaking to look after the new sewage treatment plant. This includes the servicing and maintenance of the plant. The plant is owned by you at all times and therefore it is just like the roof on your house or your boiler, in that a certain amount of maintenance will be required.

Yes, the tank itself has a 15 year warranty and all of the serviceable parts come with a 3 year warranty which is provided by the manufacturer, Graf.

Nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorus provide nutrition for plants and animals and are required for them to grow. They occur naturally in ecosystems, but human activities can increase their supply. An excess of nitrogen and phosphorus can be damaging to the environment because it can lead to eutrophication and algal blooms in rivers and lakes. The main sources of phosphorus and nitrates in rivers and lakes in the UK are sewage effluent and run-off from agricultural land.

The consortium is made up of specialists in various fields, we have worked together to come up with a solution that has already been tested with the planning departments and has seen planning applications approved using our scheme.

Not necessarily, the development only has to be within the same river catchment area to where the septic tank upgrade takes place. The scheme does not allow developers to build in areas where they couldn’t previously, i.e outside of the current Local Plans that are in place in Norfolk.

We use a Graf sewage treatment plant, Graf is a German company and the only manufacturer of sewage treatment plants that Natural England will currently approve for nutrient neutral areas under this scheme.

Yes. There is a contract to sign and also a unilateral undertaking which includes how you need to look after the plant going forward (See “Post Installation” questions re Servicing and emptying)

You will be given plenty of time to read both documents before having to sign them.