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Section 161: Anti-pollution works and operations

Water Resources Act 1991 · 1991 c. 57View on legislation.gov.uk

Part VII: Land and Works Powers — chapter I: POWERS OF THE APPROPRIATE AGENCY

This section applies where it appears to the appropriate agency that any poisonous, noxious or polluting matter or any waste matter is or has been present in, or is likely to enter, any controlled waters.

In a case where the matter appears to be or to have been present in the controlled waters, the appropriate agency shall be entitled to carry out works and operations for any of the following purposes—

removing or disposing of the matter;
remedying or mitigating any pollution caused by its presence in the waters; or
restoring (so far as it is reasonably practicable to do so) the waters, including any flora and fauna dependent on the aquatic environment of the waters, to their state immediately before the matter became present in the waters.

In a case where the matter appears to be likely to enter the controlled waters, the appropriate agency shall be entitled to carry out works and operations for the purpose of preventing it from doing so.

The appropriate agency shall be entitled to carry out investigations for the purpose of establishing any of the following—

the nature of the matter,
the source of the matter;
the nature and effects of any pollution caused or likely to be caused by the presence of the matter; and
the identity of any responsible persons.

Without prejudice to the power of the appropriate agency to carry out those investigations, the powers conferred by subsection (2) or (3) shall only be exercisable in a case where—

the appropriate agency considers it necessary to carry out forthwith any works or operations falling within that subsection; or
it appears to the appropriate agency , after reasonable enquiry, that no responsible person can be found on whom to serve a works notice.

In this section "responsible person" means a person who has caused or knowingly permitted the matter—

to be present in the controlled waters; or
to be at a place from which it was likely, in the opinion of the appropriate agency, to enter the controlled waters.

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This legislation text comes from legislation.gov.uk. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. These source and reuse terms cover the legislation text, not Remedy's commentary.

Reuse reviewed 21 August 2026 under Open Government Licence v3.0.