Drought Plan 2020-2025

Section 39(B)1 of the Water Industry Act 1991 places a statutory duty on all water companies to prepare and maintain a Drought Management Plan. It defines a drought plan as:

“a plan for how the water undertaker will continue, during a period of drought, to discharge its duties to supply adequate quantities of wholesome water, with as little recourse as reasonably possible to drought orders or drought permits”.

This Drought Plan identifies how Albion Eco intends to provide a sustainable, efficient, secure and affordable supply of wholesome water to its customers in the event of drought conditions. Whilst not relevant for the purpose of Section 39(B), non-potable supplies are considered in this document.

Albion Eco is a regulated water undertaker operating under Ofwat’s New Appointments and Variations (NAV) regime made under the Water Industry Act 1991. This enables a NAV to replace the appointed water or sewerage undertaker for a specific location within the appointed undertaker’s licence area (in this case Dŵr Cymru). NAVs have the same duties and responsibilities as other undertakers to produce drought plans.

Where a NAV operates under a bulk supply agreement with another undertaker, the Welsh Government has provided guidance that some parts of the plan may be proportionate to reflect the water resource situation (i.e. no source of abstraction). Drought plans should demonstrate that all the statutory requirements have been met, but the level of detail within the plan can be relative to the customer base and on how water supplies are obtained. In the case of Albion Eco, its water supply area serves industrial customers only in a single geographical region and, having no water resources of its own, it relies entirely on water delivered by Dŵr Cymru.

This plan was assured by the Board of Albion Eco prior to consultation.

Albion Eco yw’r cyflenwr dŵr rheoledig i ardal o Shotton, i’r gogledd o Afon Dyfrdwy. Mae’n derbyn yddau gyflenwad dŵr anhyblyg gan Dŵr Cymru o dan delerau cytundeb cyflenwi swmp. Nid oes gan Albion Eco adnodd dŵr o dan ei reolaeth ac felly nid yw’n gallu gwneud cais am drwyddedau sychder neu orchmynion. Nid oes unrhyw gwsmeriaid cartref a wasanaethir yn ardal penodi Albion Eco.

Nid yw dros 99% o’r dŵr a gyflwynir i Albion Eco yn ansawdd dŵr yfed (nid yw’n gallu ei drin), a ddefnyddir mewn prosesau diwydiannol ac yn benodol nid prif ffocws Adran 39 (B) 1 o Ddeddf Diwydiant Dŵr 1991. Yn wahanol i ddŵr arall ymgymerwyr, mae’r galw bron yn dibynnu’n unig ar gynhyrchu ac nid yw’r tywydd yn dylanwadu ar fawr.

Mae’r galw am ddŵr yfed wedi’i gyrru i lawr dros nifer o flynyddoedd a disgwylir i’r defnydd cyfan ar y safle aros yn sefydlog trwy gydol y cyfnod cynllunio presennol hyd at 2045.

Bydd Albion Eco yn cysylltu’n agos â Dŵr Cymru wrth ddatblygu amodau sychder ac wedi nodi gwahanol sbardunau a chamau gweithredu y bydd yn eu gweithredu i gyflawni ei ddyletswyddau a chyfrannu at ddarparu cyflenwadau digonol o ddŵr yfed. Ni fydd unrhyw un o’r camau hyn yn cael effaith ar feysydd sy’n sensitif i’r amgylchedd ac mae pob un ohonynt yn gyson â dyletswyddau
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