Waste Disposal and the Estuarine Environment

Waste discharges to UK estuaries and coastal waters are controlled by the application of the Environmental Quality Objective/Environmental Quality Standard (EQO/EQS) philosophy, which takes into account the dispersive capacity of the receiving waters when Discharge Consent Conditions are set. This paper describes the rationale of the approach and the mechanism whereby it is employed, illustrated by reference to a case study. Current research aimed at providing robust yet sensitive procedures for assessing the environmental impact of complex discharges is also described.