Water industry strategic environmental requirements (WISER): technical document

Question 1

Section 1: A thriving natural environment

Accepted Answer

Bathing waters

Legislation and duties

The Bathing Waters Regulations 2013 sets microbiological standards for designated bathing waters protecting bathers’ health.

Expectations

Bathing waters and the seaside economy are valuable economically, socially, and environmentally. Inland waters provide recreational opportunities including open water or ‘wild’ swimming. There is growing enthusiasm for wild swimming, which may lead to more rivers being designated as bathing waters and being specifically managed for this purpose.

The government’s aim is for all designated bathing waters in England to achieve at least sufficient class. Water companies must progress actions where:

designated bathing waters have a current planning class of poor
designated bathing waters have a risk of receiving a planning class of poor
designated bathing waters are failing their baseline class

Where water companies can demonstrate evidence of the environmental need and customer support, actions that go beyond delivery of statutory obligations can be identified including:

actions to improve waters to good or excellent where there is evidence of customer support
actions to improve non-designated waters where there is evidence of customer support

Water companies are encouraged to investigate alternative technologies to ultraviolet disinfection.

Catchment actions can be effective in reducing the impact of microbial pollution on bathing waters. Land-use management is an alternative to ultraviolet disinfection and additional treatment.

Good asset health is essential for protecting bathing waters. Water companies need to actively manage their collecting systems and monitoring the frequency and severity of storm overflows. Creating and following drainage and wastewater management plans should help this process.

Chemicals

Legislation and duties

The Water Environment (Water Framework Directive) (England and Wales) Regulations 2017 (the WFD Regulations) and associated legislation sets out environmental quality standards.

Permits to discharge are issued under the Environmental Permitting Regulations 2016.

The 2022 river basin management plans will set out the legally binding objectives for groundwater and surface waters, including estuaries and coastal waters. Water companies should take account of and consider the environmental objectives and summary of measures in the 2022 plans when exercising any of their functions to prevent deterioration and play their part in improving chemical status.

Expectations

The water industry has undertaken extensive chemical investigations to understand their contribution to chemicals in our waters. A small number of pollutants are responsible for widespread failure of chemical status. Wastewater treatment works and storm-water overflows are contributing sources of these pollutants. Some of these pollutants may also threaten the future resilience of drinking water resources.

There is no one treatment currently offering end-of-pipe treatment solution across the range of priority chemicals. There is also increasing evidence that current treatment technologies remove such pollutants by transferring the more persistent pollutants into sewage sludge, which is then spread to land, so potentially transferring pollution within or between catchments.

A strategic approach to addressing such pollutants needs to be taken which involves a combination of controls on use, entry into waste streams, improved management of entry of pollutants into sewer and improved sludge management.

Water companies must comply with permits set to prevent further deterioration of waterbodies resulting from wastewater emissions and, where cost beneficial, deliver local improvements in water quality.

Water companies should work with the Environment Agency to agree a framework so that existing wastewater treatment works, and those being upgraded to meet other objectives, deliver against agreed benchmarks for chemicals. This framework should consider chemicals being discharged to water and emissions to land via sewage sludge.

Water companies should seek the best overall improvement in environmental quality through planned actions. Working with others will be essential to identify alternatives to end of pipe treatment solutions. The aim should be to deliver a framework that meets statutory requirements and reduces the loads of more persistent chemicals entering the environment rather than transferring pollution within or between catchments.

Water companies should consider how reducing storm overflows, the use of nature-based solutions and sustainable drainage systems could all contribute to reduced loads of chemicals entering the environment.

Water companies are expected to develop innovative catchment controls to better manage inputs to the sewer catchments. This should include improved tracking and management of trade effluent that contain priority substances and transfers from tankered waste and improved sludge management, as agreed with the Environment Agency. Water companies are also expected to develop innovative public engagement to reduce inputs, such as the Wessex Water pharmaceuticals and nature project.

The above activities will be supported by a chemicals investigation programme (CIP).

Drinking waters

Legislation and duties

Drinking water protected areas are established under the Water Environment (Water Framework Directive) (England & Wales) Regulations 2017 (the WFD Regulations) for water bodies from which water for human consumption is abstracted.

Under existing water treatment provisions, water companies must make sure treated water from drinking water protected areas meets the standards set out in the Water Supply (Water Quality) Regulations 2016 (as amended) and the Private Water Supplies (England) Regulations 2016 (as amended).

Water companies need to protect water resources and make sure their supplies are resilient. Companies need to consider how to mitigate climate change impacts, future demand, and deterioration caused by existing and emerging chemical substances.

Expectations

Water companies must put actions in place to avoid deterioration in water abstracted for supply, which could lead to the need for additional treatment. Catchment actions to reduce pollution reaching water abstractions from surface waters or groundwater can be used. Water companies can put in place actions to reduce the levels of treatment over time.

Groundwater bodies must also meet good groundwater chemical status and water companies should work towards reversing upward pollutant trends.

The Environment Agency identifies non-statutory safeguard zones for drinking water protected areas ‘at risk’ of not meeting the WFD Regulations drinking water objectives. Water companies should take an active role in developing the safeguard zone actions plans which the Environment Agency holds, and agreeing the actions needed to protect and improve the drinking water protected areas.

Catchment actions to control and reduce pollution are encouraged as cost effective alternatives to additional treatment. Catchment actions, which can be implemented by water companies or through local catchment partnerships, secure wider catchment benefits and increase natural capital value.

To achieve drinking water protected area objectives water companies are encouraged to:

work with farmers and landowners to change land use
reduce concentrations of substances such as nitrate, pesticides, and particularly persistent and mobile substances
implement other innovative solutions

Water companies can make agreements with landowners, occupiers, or local authorities, to more effectually collect, convey or preserve the purity of drinking water sources under section 164 Water Industry Act 1991. This includes making agreements to fund the remediation of contaminated land at orphaned sites.

Eels

Legislation and duties

The EC Eel Regulation 1100/2007, transposed into UK law via the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018, aims to establish measures for the recovery of the stock of European eel.

The International Union for Conservation of Nature has listed the European eel as critically endangered. The species is also listed under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), which imposes trade regulation for conservation purposes. The latest stock assessment in July 2021 estimated that all 9 river basin districts in England are failing to meet the EC Eel Regulation target for escapement of adult silver eels returning to the sea to breed.

The Eels (England and Wales) Regulations 2009 (the Eels Regulations) support in the implementation of recovery measures in the 11 eel management plans. The Eels Regulations require the protection of eel at water intakes and make provision for eel passage at obstructions.

Water companies have already invested significantly in addressing the requirements of the Eels Regulations through previous national environment programmes. Many of the priority intakes and obstructions for eels have already been improved but more work is needed to protect eels at those assets that still present a risk.

Expectations

Water companies must comply with the requirements of the Eels (England and Wales) Regulations 2009. This will support the recovery of the European eel stock.

All intakes (abstracting at least 20 cubic metres per day) and all outfalls must be screened to a required specification to prevent the ingress of eel unless the Environment Agency exempts the requirement. The Environment Agency will not enforce the requirement at outfalls unless there is specific evidence of risk to eel.

Actions to enable safe passage of eel past obstructions are required where the Environment Agency serves notice.

There is flexibility in scheduling eel screening or passage work alongside other programmes of work to make it more cost effective.

Environment Act 2021 targets

Legislation, forthcoming legal provisions, and duties

The Environment Act 2021 will contribute to increasing the quality of our water environment.

The government is developing new, legally binding targets for water environment improvement. The new targets will provide the framework to drive improvement on the most significant pressures on the water environment and make significant progress towards meet the 25 year environment plan goals. Other targets, such as the species abundance target and protecting 30% of our land, will also contribute to reducing water pollution.

Habitats sites and Ramsar sites

Legislation and duties

Water companies have a duty to help protect, conserve, and restore Habitats sites.

Habitats sites receive special protection under the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017 (as amended) to help conserve the internationally important habitats and species for which they are designated. Water companies should treat wetlands of international importance designated under the Ramsar Convention, known as Ramsar sites, in the same way as Habitats sites.

A Habitats site is any site which would be included within the definition at regulation 8 of the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017 (as amended) for the purpose of those regulations, for example Special Areas of Conservation and Special Protection Areas. Listed or proposed Ramsar sites, and certain other areas, are treated in the same way as habitats sites a matter of government policy.

Water companies have a duty to consider how they can help to:

protect, conserve or restore the designated features of the site to meet their conservation objectives
prevent the deterioration of the site’s habitats from human activity or natural changes, including habitats that support designated species
prevent significant disturbance of the site’s designated species from human activity or natural changes

Water companies must do a Habitats Regulations Assessment if their plans and projects may affect Habitats sites to make sure they comply with the requirements of the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017 (as amended). They should make sure their plans and projects have no adverse effect, either alone or in-combination with other plans and projects, on the integrity of habitats sites.

Expectations

Water companies should take action to improve Habitats sites or prevent deterioration. For example, by addressing fully licensed abstraction and or discharge flow scenarios.

Water companies should include actions or investigations to contribute to or meet conservation objectives for Habitats sites.

Water companies must take account of predicted growth in housing development in their business plans and have a duty to maintain and upgrade their wastewater systems.

Water companies are also required to meet permit limits set to prevent exceedance of, or deterioration towards, the relevant quality standards downstream of wastewater discharges.

If water companies expect that predicted levels of housing growth will result in deterioration against these standards, they are required to inform the Environment Agency and apply for a permit variation. The Environment Agency will review the permit and tighten permit limits where appropriate, which will subsequently drive improvements in wastewater treatment to ensure no deterioration against the relevant quality standards.

For protected Habitats sites, it is important that nutrients are reduced optimally to help achieve favourable conservation status, lower the mitigation burden for developers or even remove the need for nutrient neutrality where this is a pre-requisite for growth.

For PR24, there is therefore the potential that water companies may be required to achieve the ‘technically achievable limit’ for nutrients at wastewater treatment works impacting on Habitats sites failing to achieve favourable conservation status due to nutrient levels. Companies should therefore start to cost and plan to meet technically achievable limit from 2025 ahead of a direction setting out the requirements in detail.

Where sites are already in unfavourable condition due to elevated nutrient levels, Natural England considers that competent authorities will need to carefully justify how further inputs from new plans or projects, either alone or in combination, will not adversely affect the integrity of the site in view of the conservation objectives.

Nutrient neutrality offers an acceptable means of allowing development to proceed, whilst protecting sites from deterioration and not preventing them from being brought into favourable condition. This will remain the case until such time that actions or plans are in place that provide the necessary degree of certainty and create environmental headroom for new development.

In the catchments of Habitats sites failing for nutrients, water companies should work with developers and other partners to facilitate the delivery of appropriate sustainable mitigation actions. This can include integrated constructed wetlands downstream of wastewater treatment works where these would enable development until longer-term actions to restore sites are possible.

Reducing pollution at source will help recover, improve and protect Habitats sites. This will facilitate sustainable development in affected catchment areas. Local Planning Authorities have funding for catchment officers to help identify nutrient mitigation to allow sustainable development to continue.

Water companies should also include actions to contribute towards the creation of sufficient environmental headroom for new development in the longer term. This may be delivered by catchment nutrient balancing as well as, or instead of, traditional hard engineering solutions.

Water companies should consider:

their licences and permits which may impact on the most sensitive environmental needs, for example Habitats Sites, and put in place solutions by the agreed dates to achieve the required environmental outcomes
support achieving the long-term environmental destination as set out in the regional water resource management plans, whilst accounting for predicted climate change impacts

Water companies should also consider:

requirements arising from new site designations
revised boundaries or new features added to existing designated sites
new evidence or technology including that arising from PR19 investigations and outcomes from joint Environment Agency and Natural England work to update diffuse water pollution plans for all Habitats sites affected by diffuse pollution
changes to the targets that underpin the conservation objectives as set out in the common standards monitoring guidance
how they could support the delivery of a whole-site approach to marine protected area management through the improvement in water quality in coastal waters – the whole-site approach may apply to sites with differing designation status such as Habitats sites or Marine Conservation Zones (MCZs)
upgrades that may be needed to meet the technically achievable limit for nutrients at waste water treatment works (WwTWs) impacting on Habitats sites failing for nutrients – companies should discuss with the Environment Agency and Natural England to determine the priority sites and associated WwTWs for action

Freshwater fish

Legislation and duties

Freshwater fish are a key biological element of water body classification and are part of the conservation designation at many sites across the country.

A healthy, sustainable, fish community is often integral to the natural function of a freshwater system and is inextricably linked to the quality of the surrounding freshwater and riparian habitat, including the wider catchment.

Physical modification is a primary cause of failure in many water bodies, partly due to the impact that structures can have on ecological connectivity. This can stop fish reaching water bodies they are expected to be in, or limiting access to, spawning areas. This affects compliance with river basin management plan objectives and limits the socioeconomic benefits healthy and resilient fish stocks bring. Structures can also exacerbate the effect of other pressures, and stop, or prolong, recovery once they have been resolved.

Expectations

Where water company assets are shown to be affecting fish passage to the extent that fish populations in water bodies associated with that structure are not achieving good status or not meeting designated site conservation objectives then an appropriate fish passage solution will need to be implemented. Where there is risk of water bodies, including headwaters and streams, associated with their asset declining below good status, then a fish passage solution should be sought when other improvements are being made to that asset.

Water companies should work in partnership to identify and implement solutions that benefit all fish species and to identify opportunities to schedule action alongside other programmes of work.

Healthy and resilient fish stocks

Ensuring fish stocks are healthy and resilient means they can withstand pressures and adapt to changing conditions. Whilst many of the expectations in the WISER are necessary for, or will promote, healthy and resilient fish stocks, there are species specific legislative requirements and government backed initiatives for fish. These are set out below.

Actions targeted at specific fish species often benefit the wider fish community and can improve the form and function of a watercourse. Improved fish stocks bring socio-economic benefits to communities, through angling and improved wildlife diversity. Recreational fisheries generate significant income, particularly for the rural areas in which many of them are located. In 2019 freshwater anglers spent £1.6 billion which supported £1.4 billion of additional economic activity. See The Rivers Trust: Natural Capital of Freshwater Fisheries in England (2021).

Salmon, sea trout, eel, lamprey and smelt can also support commercial fishing, where this can be done sustainably. These commercial fisheries can also generate significant income for individuals and may have heritage value for their local communities.

Expectations

Water companies should identify actions to improve abstractions and outfalls to prevent the entrainment of fish and to address barriers to passage of fish factoring in the wider benefits of fish pass solutions such as improved geomorphology. Removal of barriers should always be considered as the first option in any feasibility study.

Multiple benefits should be sought when designing and implementing actions particularly where customer support places added value on the presence of healthy and resilient fish stocks.

Invasive non-native species

Legislation and duties

The UK has specific international and national obligations and laws to control the spread of invasive non-native species (INNS). The Invasive Alien Species Regulation (IAS Regulations) aims to limit spread, implement controls and prevent risks from INNS.

The Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 (as amended) and the Invasive Alien Species (Enforcement and Permitting) Order 2019 provide a comprehensive regulatory regime to tackle species of special concern in Great Britain.

The IAS Regulation and the Great Britain invasive non-native species strategy focus on understanding the management and mitigation of pathways of spread.

Expectations

Non-native species are those that have reached Great Britain by accidental human transport, deliberate human introduction, or which arrived by natural dispersal from a non-native population in Europe.

Managing the introduction and spread of INNS are key to delivering improvements and preventing deterioration in water body status and achieving conservation objectives.

It is estimated INNS are a contributing pressure in over a quarter of water bodies not achieving good status, and over 70% of water bodies are at risk of deterioration because of INNS.

Water companies should understand the pathways of spread of INNS on their assets and through the water environment, and how those pathways can be mitigated.

Actions should be taken to:

mitigate the risk of introduction and spread of INNS across new and existing water company assets and activities
to control and manage INNS where their impacts pose a risk of deterioration in water body status or have an impact on achieving conservation objectives at Sites of Special Scientific Interest and Habitats sites

Where established INNS are impacting on ecological condition and status due to other pressures in a catchment (for example, nutrient loads, physical modification or disturbance), water companies should work with others to reduce those pressures on the environment, and work in partnership to control the INNS if appropriate.

Water companies are expected to start work on mitigating the risks of introduction and spread of INNS within existing raw water transfer networks. New raw water transfers should take account of the Environment Agency’s position statement on managing risk of spreading INNS through raw water transfers. Water companies should look for consistency in approach with proposed transfers within the Regulator’s Alliance for Progressing Infrastructure Development (RAPID) framework.

When developing other schemes and initiatives, including infrastructure, net gain projects and nature recovery networks, water companies should consider INNS impacts and pathways.

The water industry should follow good practice on INNS including:

operate within the Great Britain non-native species strategy framework and INNS local or regional strategies
work with others and at the catchment level, actions to tackle INNS are most effective when resources and expertise are shared – water companies are encouraged to work with each other on research into mitigation measures for water transfers and to work with local stakeholders to prevent and control INNS, for example, by promoting the ‘Check, Clean, Dry’ campaign
participate in national and regional research, biocontrol trials, and biosecurity campaigns to prevent the spread and reduce future costs benefitting customers – the development of innovative solutions to biosecurity and the control of INNS is encouraged
company-wide plans for managing and controlling the effects of INNS on assets and for preventing the spread of INNS should be developed and implemented – these should take account of any additional threats or challenge posed by invasive species as a result of climate change

Local Nature Recovery Strategies

Legislation, forthcoming legal provisions, and duties

The Environment Act 2021 will introduce Local Nature Recovery Strategies (LNRSs) in England. LNRSs are a new system of spatial strategies for nature, covering the whole of England. They are tools designed to achieve a more coordinated, practical and focused action to recover nature. Water companies contribute to shaping and supporting nature recovery through LNRSs and using nature-based solutions. In turn this contributes to wider socio-economic benefits.

LNRSs support the achievement of mandatory biodiversity net gain. They also provide a focus for a strengthened duty on all public authorities to conserve and enhance biodiversity. They will underpin the Nature Recovery Network (NRN), alongside work to develop delivery partnerships and to integrate nature into incentives and land management actions. It is anticipated water companies will need to have regard to the priorities set out in the LNRSs covering their operational area when agreeing PR24 priorities. Water companies should explore opportunities to work with others where their ambitions overlap with NRNs and LNRS.

Water companies should take opportunities to improve the landscape, heritage, access and recreation outcomes linked to their duties under the Water Industry Act 1991. In exercising their functions in relation to land within designated landscapes (areas of outstanding natural beauty (AONBs), National Parks and The Broads) water companies should have regard to their statutory purposes. Working with the local AONB Unit or National Park Authority on interpreting the ‘have regard to duty’ will help identify opportunities for partnership working. Good practice includes keeping records of decisions to show how the duty has been considered.

Actions to improve public access should take into consideration. They should consider the costs and benefits of the action and ensure there is appropriate customer support.

Expectations

Water companies have a role in tackling diffuse pollution from their land and improving the connectivity between designated sites. They can do this through the national NRN. Water companies can:

restore and enhance habitats
create habitats
expand designated sites and linking them up

This will:

support biodiversity recovery
support naturally functioning ecosystems resilient to climate change and other pressures
increase the population of species

When operating their assets and undertaking their activities, water companies should consider actions under non-statutory initiatives including the England Peat Action Plan (35,000ha of restoration by 2025), the England Trees Action Plan (11 million trees by 2030) and the National Pollinator Strategy (and any related plans and actions following its scheduled completion in 2024).

Marine Conservation Zones

Legislation and duties

The Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009 provides the legal mechanism to ensure clean, healthy, safe, productive, and biologically diverse oceans and seas by improving the management and protection of the marine and coastal environment.

MCZs designated under the Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009 protect nationally important marine wildlife, habitats, geology, and geomorphology in offshore and inshore waters.

The Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009 requires public authorities, so far as consistent with the proper exercise of their functions, to exercise those functions in a manner they consider best furthers a MCZ’s conservation objectives. Where that is not possible, to exercise their functions in a manner that least hinders those objectives.

Water company catchment activities and wastewater operations that can impact water quality have the potential to negatively impact on MCZ features.

Expectations

Water companies are expected to contribute to maintaining or achieving the objectives for MCZs and the desired state of the environment within Highly Protected Marine Areas when introduced by government.

It is possible that pilot Highly Protected Marine Areas will be consulted on and introduced prior to the submission of a water company’s PR24 business plans. One mechanism under consideration for the introduction of the Highly Protected Marine Areas is using the Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009.

Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act 2006 and biodiversity priorities

Legislation, forthcoming legal provisions, and duties

Under the Natural Environment and Rural Communities (NERC) Act 2006, water companies have a duty to ‘have regard’ to conserving biodiversity when delivering their functions and contribute to local biodiversity priorities and obligations on their own land. This includes restoring, maintaining, or enhancing the condition of habitats or species.

The government guidance ‘Biodiversity duty: public authority duty to have regard to conserving biodiversity’ sets out what the biodiversity duty is and how water companies should meet it when carrying out all their activities.

Some ‘priority’ habitats and species are identified as being of principal importance for the purpose of conserving biodiversity under Section 41 of the NERC Act. Examples include water-dependent habitats such as rivers, streams, lakes, ponds, canals, wetlands, fens, blanket bogs, and coastal habitats, and species such as white-clawed crayfish, freshwater pearl mussel, lamprey, salmon and sea trout.

The 25 Year Environment Plan has shifted the ambition. The Environment Act 2021 amends the NERC Act 2006 placing a duty on public authorities including water companies to further, so far as is consistent with the proper exercise of their functions, the conservation and enhancement of biodiversity. This reflects the aim of restoring or enhancing a species population or habitat and the government’s ambition for the prevention of further human-induced extinctions of known threatened species. Defra will publish updated guidance on how to implement the amended biodiversity duty.

As public authorities, water companies must also have regard to the relevant Local Nature Recovery Strategy under the amended biodiversity duty. It is anticipated that water companies will need to have regard to the priorities set out in each Local Nature Recovery Strategy covered by their operational area when developing PR24 options.

Expectations

We expect water companies to develop actions during PR24 to contribute to biodiversity priorities and obligations carried out on land they own, the catchment in which they operate, and other areas in which they exercise their functions.

Water companies should have particular regard to the needs of priority habitats and priority species as set out in legislation.

New information since PR19 that should be taken into account by water companies includes priority river habitat and lake habitat mapping and targeting, and details on the management needs of priority species and others at high risk of extinction. Natural England’s ‘Narrative for conserving freshwater and wetland habitats in England’ explains the importance of natural habitat function to freshwater-related biodiversity and is supported by the ‘Discovering Priority Habitats in England’ website.

The future of chalk streams is dependent on action by, and raised ambition from, water companies. Sustainable abstraction, reducing demand for water and reducing pollution, particularly from storm overflows, are key actions water companies should take to protect and enhance chalk streams.

In line with the Catchment Based Approach Chalk Stream Restoration Strategy 2021 water companies should lead on behaviour change around water resources, encouraging customers to use and pollute less. Water companies should drive innovative solutions and lead the way on water supply issues, demand management, sewerage, and sewage treatment.

Salmon and sea trout

Legislation and duties

Salmon are an iconic indicator of the health of the water environment. In some river catchments salmon form part of the designation for Habitats sites and Special Sites of Scientific interest (SSSI). They are identified as priority species of principal importance for the purpose of conserving biodiversity under Section 41 of the Natural Environment and Rural Communities (NERC) Act 2006.

Sea trout are also a key indicator of the health of the water environment. Sea trout, unlike salmon, often make use of the very upper most reaches of a river catchment taking advantage of smaller streams for spawning purposes. Therefore, ensuring continued upstream and downstream access to small streams for both adults and smolts as well as maintaining suitable habitat quality and quantity is vital in maintaining healthy populations of sea trout.

The Environment Agency undertakes annual assessments of salmon and sea trout stocks across the principal rivers in England. These assessments show that many of these stocks are in a poor state and, for salmon, have declined significantly over the last 30 years. Despite this, salmon are returning to several rivers where they were locally extinct because of improvements to water quality and fish passage.

For instance, in 2019, salmon were seen in the River Don upstream of Sheffield for the first time in 150 years. This demonstrates that when in-river habitat and water quality is made suitable for salmon, they have potential to re-establish viable populations. The populations in these ‘recovering rivers’ remain fragile and will require protection and support to continue their recovery.

In waters frequented by salmon and sea trout, the Salmon and Freshwater Fisheries Act 1975 (SFFA 1975) sets out specific circumstances for when fish passes, and the screening of intakes and outfalls, are required. Where water company assets or operations affect, or have the potential to affect, salmon and sea trout then these can be addressed through the NERC Act 2006.

Where salmon and sea trout form part of a site’s conservation designation the corresponding Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017 or Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 drivers can be used. These can also be used to address impacts of water company assets and operations on river and sea lamprey, shad and smelt. This would include addressing flow, fish passage and water quality pressures that are within the designated site or affect fish reaching it. Actions taken under these regulations should be prioritised to rivers where these species are failing to achieve their management or conservation targets.

The government-backed Salmon 5 Point Approach (Salmon 5PA), which underpins the North Atlantic Salmon Conservation Organisation salmon implementation plan for England (2019 to 2024), aims to restore the abundance, diversity and resilience of salmon stocks across England. Tackling impacts on salmon will bring benefits to other species and habitats, including sea trout.

Expectations

Water companies must improve fish passage and screening at assets when the requirements of SFFA 1975 are met. Water companies should also identify and investigate those assets that may need future improvement once salmon and sea trout are able to access the reach areas or river systems that are currently inaccessible.

Where customer support places added value on the presence of healthy salmon and sea trout populations, the expectation is that water companies go beyond statutory obligations. In such cases, partnership working is encouraged with local fisheries partners and the Environment Agency to identify the best options for the recovery and the attainment of favourable conservation status for the species.

Shellfish waters

Legislation and duties

The microbial standard (measured as Escherichia coli) in shellfish flesh is retained for shellfish protected areas in the Shellfish Water Protected Areas Directions 2016 (the Shellfish Directions). The actions to protect and improve shellfish waters will be set out in the updated shellfish water action plans that will be published with the 2022 river basin management plans.

Expectations

Having safe and sustainable shellfish harvesting areas bring commercial and economic benefits to local communities and improve public health.

Water companies should progress actions that reduce microbial pollution from wastewater discharges to, or near to, shellfish water protected areas to:

investigate actions required to prevent deterioration or improve shellfish waters
prevent deterioration of and improve the quality of shellfish waters
move shellfish waters towards compliance, or achieving compliance, with the Shellfish Directions microbial standard where it is not consistently met
support existing and future aquaculture operations that rely on good quality inshore and offshore waters

Shellfish investigations or actions should account for the potential impact of development growth and climate change.

The impact on shellfish waters from storm overflows and emergency overflows should be reduced by limiting spill frequency and volume. This will be managed through environmental permits.

Water companies are encouraged to investigate alternative technologies to ultraviolet disinfection. Catchment initiatives and partnership working can reduce the impact of contamination on shellfish water protected areas. Water companies should consider upstream catchment solutions and land-use management, including catchment sensitive farming, alongside ultraviolet disinfection and additional treatment.

Urban diffuse pollution, including wrongly connected pipework (misconnections) and polluted surface water outfalls, is a frequent reason for water quality failures in shellfish water protected areas. Water companies should work with local authorities, National Highways, the Environment Agency, and catchment partners to identify and resolve urban diffuse pollution of shellfish waters using initiatives such as ConnectRight.

Contamination of shellfish with viruses, particularly norovirus, is a human health risk. While there is currently no viral standard, work is underway in Europe to bring in a standard. It is also likely of one being introduced in future which will affect UK businesses. Using Escherichia coli alone as the indicator organism for the degree and type of faecal contamination is increasingly considered insufficient.

Water companies should consider early investigations and or technology trials on viral controls. This should include the possible link to the anti-microbial resistance elements of the chemical investigation programme, as similar technologies are likely to be involved.

Sites of Special Scientific Interest

Legislation and duties

The Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 (as amended) requires public bodies to take reasonable steps, consistent with the proper exercise of their functions, to further the conservation and enhancement of the flora, fauna or geological or physiological features of Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs).

The legislation places a statutory obligation to give prior notification to the statutory nature conservation advisors in relation to operations water companies undertake or for which water companies give consents or authorisations, which are likely to damage the special features of an SSSI. This applies whether the functions or activity is being carried on within or outside the SSSI. SSSIs benefit from strong legal protection due to their high value for biodiversity. There is government guidance on public body responsibilities when carrying out or approving works on or near sites of special scientific interest (SSSIs).

Expectations

Water companies are expected to contribute to maintaining or achieving SSSI favourable condition both on land they own, the catchment in which they operate, and other areas in which they exercise their functions.

Water companies have a key role in achievement of nature recovery including the government’s 25 Year Environment Plan commitment to restore 75 per cent of our one million hectares of terrestrial and freshwater protected sites to favourable condition alongside improving the water quality of the coastal environment and securing their wildlife value for the long term.

Urban wastewater

Legislation and duties

The environment is protected from the adverse effects of discharges of urban waste water through the Urban Waste Water Treatment Regulations 1994 (UWWT Regulations). Water companies should see these in the context of the general duties to provide, improve and extend the sewerage system imposed by section 94 Water Industry Act 1991.

The UWWT Regulations requires that urban waste water entering collecting systems is treated. Also that wastewater treatment works are designed, constructed, operated, and maintained to make sure they perform sufficiently under all normal local climatic conditions. The UWWT Regulations require the Environment Agency to make sure limiting pollution from storm overflows is achieved using “best technical knowledge not entailing excessive cost”, reinforced in the European Court of Justice judgment on the Thames Tideway and Whitburn Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive Infraction proceedings (Case C 301/10).

Section 101A of the Water Industry Act 1991 (as amended by the Environment Act 1995) places a duty on sewerage undertakers to provide first time sewerage (by connection to a foul sewer) in an area where non-mains sewerage arrangements are causing an environmental or amenity problem or are likely to do so if no preventative action is taken. Where this is the case, and taking account of legislation, provision of public sewerage is the appropriate solution.

Expectations

Water companies must upgrade qualifying discharges within 7 years to meet tertiary treatment requirements to protect newly identified sensitive areas. The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) are expected to announce the latest sensitive area designations in 2023.

Water companies must improve waste water treatment where population thresholds are exceeded. In providing satisfactory collecting systems and treatment requirements water companies should include actions in their business plans where requirements are already identified or become newly identified. For example, additional sewerage capacity for population growth areas or resolving issues concerning permit applications. Water companies must provide secondary treatment in line with government policy where septic tanks discharge to surface waters.

Schemes relating to successfully determined applications made under Section 101A of the Water Industry Act 1991 – the provision of first-time sewerage – and not already funded are eligible for PR24 funding if engineering work is scheduled for the period (2025 to 2030). Schemes relating to potentially successful applications in relation to Section 101A, that is applications received but not yet determined, should be identified to indicate the likely scale of obligations for PR24.

Water companies must maintain sewers to demonstrate sewer leakage to ground is minimal, especially in source protection zones.

Water companies must take action to increase flow to full treatment (FFT) and storm tank capacity at wastewater treatment works (WwTWs) where the UWWT Regulations requirements are not being met. To prioritise improvements water companies should consider factors such as:

spill frequency and duration
available dilution
observed or modelled water quality problems
amenity use or other planned improvements

Where permit requirements for FFT or storm tanks are not being met, water companies must include improvements in their business plans.

Demonstrating ongoing active management of collecting systems is strongly encouraged. This includes a sewerage planning approach including monitoring events from intermittent discharges and, where appropriate, acting when spill frequency increases beyond design performance. This includes assuring data provision and accuracy in line with good practice.

Water body status (river basin management plan objectives)

Legislation and duties

The 2022 river basin management plans will set out the legally binding objectives for groundwater and surface waters, including estuaries and coastal waters. The plans summarise the programmes of measures needed to meet those objectives. Where evidence supports a change in the water body objective, water companies will only be able to confirm detailed actions once the Secretary of State has approved the 2022 river basin management plans.

Water companies must make sure that their activities will support achieving the water body objectives set out in the 2022 river basin management plans, including:

current and future abstraction
return of treated wastewater
physical infrastructure and associated maintenance activities
preventing deterioration

Water companies should take an adaptive management approach to make sure their actions are resilient to the likely impacts of extreme weather and climate change (2 to 4^oC), as well as population growth.

Under Regulation 33 of the WFD Regulations public bodies must, in exercising their functions so far as affecting a river basin district, have regard to the river basin management plans for that district. ‘Have regard to’ includes taking account of and considering the environmental objectives and summary of measures contained within the 2022 plans when exercising any of their functions. Water companies are ‘public bodies’ for the purposes of Regulation 33.

Expectations

Water companies should assess and develop a programme to meet river basin management plan requirements by 2027. They should base it on a consistent methodology for assessing costs and benefits across the sector.

No river, lake or estuary should be in poor or bad ecological status due to water company activities. The programme for PR24 must include actions to improve water body status to ensure ‘moderate’ status as a minimum is achieved by 2030 and improve further where technology allows.

In addition, where new evidence shows actions to get to good status are now technically feasible, and best value, they should be implemented as soon as possible after Ofwat’s final determination.

Water companies should work with stakeholders and catchment partnerships to explore integrated solutions and to achieve multi-functional benefits at a catchment scale. Working with partners can help achieve nutrient neutrality solutions and facilitate sustainable development.

Actions to improve, or to prevent deterioration in water body status should be proportionate. Each sector, business, or individual deals with its proportional contribution, following the current ‘polluter pays principle’. The principles are:

water companies should apply the polluter pays approach when developing actions to address nutrients. The approach encourages flexible and innovative solutions, including catchment nutrient balancing (including trading), providing proposals are legislatively compliant
water companies can go beyond their proportional contribution where this passes appropriate economic appraisal and affordability tests. Such actions should be carried out on land they own, the catchment in which they operate, and other areas in which they exercise their functions, with appropriate customer support
where the reduction cannot be achieved on the grounds of technical infeasibility water companies should work with the regulators and other sectors to identify alternative technically feasible and cost-effective measures

Water companies are not limited to measures that relate to the operation of their own assets. Land management approaches designed to minimise pollution at source instead of paying for measures to remove the same pollutants downstream will be supported where this provides value to their customers, for instance catchment nutrient balancing.

When planning to meet flow objectives to support good status, water companies should first consider flow recovery measures and then complementary physical restoration options. Options such as river restoration or floodplain reconnection may be appropriate where there is evidence of past modification pressures. This is as long as these options seek to reduce those pressures. Restoration plans for rivers and riparian habitat designated as Sites of Special Scientific Interest must be considered.

Question 2

Section 2: Expected performance and compliance

Accepted Answer

Performance

Water companies are responsible for complying with the law and avoiding polluting the environment.

Water companies should strive to perform beyond expectations, where appropriate, and achieve excellence. Our excellent performance outcomes are:

sustaining a high level of performance and operating in a way that best protects people and the environment
achieving the industry leading 4 star status on the Environmental Performance Assessment (EPA) consistently

Legislation and duties

The Environmental Permitting (England and Wales) Regulations 2016 (EPR) aim to ensure water discharges and groundwater activities do not pollute the environment.

The principal offences under EPR are:

operating a regulated facility without a permit
causing, or knowingly permitting a water discharge activity or groundwater activity without a permit
failing to comply with a permit or an enforcement related notice

The EPR are applied in proportion to the:

environmental risk posed by an operation
impact of that operation
operator’s performance in mitigating the risks and impacts

Expectations

Permit compliance and preventing pollution are statutory obligations. Where zero serious pollution incidents or 100% compliance with permits is not achieved water companies are expected to have established the reasons for this and have plans in place to improve performance. For example, implementation of pollution incident reduction plans and drainage and wastewater management plans. We expect high ambition and timely delivery of improvements.

Water company business plans should include all actions identified within the agreed action Water Industry National Environment Programme (WINEP) spreadsheet. All WINEP actions should be delivered on time and to agreed specification.

Management of sludge treatment, supply, storage and use should not cause pollution to land, surface water or groundwater.

Flow monitoring of significant discharges has a vital role in protecting water quality by ensuring permitted flow limits are complied with and by providing data to understand the impact of discharges on the water environment. Water companies should comply with all permit flow requirements.

Monitoring Certification Scheme (MCERTS) flow monitoring should be provided at wastewater treatment works where the permitted dry weather flow or maximum daily flow is greater than 50m³ per day and at qualifying water treatment works. MCERTS flow passed forward flow and overflow operation monitoring will also be provided at wastewater treatment works to be confident that permitted flow to full treatment settings and other overflow operation conditions are complied with.

The EPA uses indicators to compare performance between water companies and across years. Water companies are expected to achieve green status for each EPA metric and be rated 4 star (the highest level) performance consistently by 2025.

Performance reporting, and the EPA, will be expanded in the future to strengthen and broaden reporting. Options being considered, but not limited to, include:

resilience to flooding
waste water flow compliance
storm overflows
wastewater permit compliance of non-numeric permit conditions
waste management permit compliance
performance relating to water resources activities
nature-based solutions and catchment initiatives

How water companies operate facilities can improve compliance performance and minimise the risk of pollution from activities. Using understanding of the vulnerability of sites and any local network pressures, management systems should be regularly reviewed. Contingency plans and accident and pollution incident prevention and management plans should be tested so staff can effectively and promptly respond to any incident.

Water companies are expected to take responsibility for regularly reviewing and updating permits. By 2025, the majority of permits should be updated to EPR in line with agreed permitting programmes. Permitting information should be provided in an accurate and timely manner to improve the quality and minimise rejected applications.

Sludge

Legislation and duties

The Sewage (Use in Agriculture) Regulations 1989 introduce prohibitions on the supply and use of sludge in agriculture otherwise than in accordance with requirements for treatment and use. The Urban Waste Water Treatment Regulations 1994 require reuse of sludge where practicable. Recycling to land of sewage sludge should not prevent water bodies achieving the WFD Regulations objectives.

Expectations

All water companies produce sludge as part of their sewage treatment processes. The storage and use of sludge require careful control as misuse can result in damage to the environment. Sludge management is also important for reducing greenhouse gas emissions and ensuring the water industry can meet net zero.

Water companies are expected to manage their sewage sludge treatment, supply, storage, and use, so as not to cause pollution to land, surface water or groundwater. They must follow the Sludge (Use in Agriculture) Regulations and Environmental Permitting Regulations and the Defra Code of Practice for Agriculture Use of Sewage Sludge.

Water companies are expected to have robust sludge management contingency plans when business as usual is disrupted. In periods of disruption of supplies to farmers (for example, due to exceptional weather) this includes considering and using alternative management options when existing routes are not available. This will require water companies to improve resilience in their sludge supply chain to agriculture and other relevant use of disposal outlets.

Water companies are expected to develop new markets for the wider value of sludge and must ensure these align with net zero obligations, for example, renewable energy production via advanced anaerobic digestion.

Question 3

Section 3: Resilience for the environment and customers

Accepted Answer

Water companies own and operate a wide range of infrastructure, from water supply reservoirs to sewers, and treatment works. However, this infrastructure is vulnerable to extreme weather and pressures relating to population growth and development.

The water industry defines resilience as the ability to cope with, and recover from, disruption and anticipate trends and variability, to maintain services for people and protect the natural environment now and in the future. Making sure water company infrastructure is fit for the country’s long-term needs is a vital part of ensuring resilient places and communities.

The government’s long-term ambition is to create a nation more resilient to future flood, coastal erosion, and extreme weather and to reduce the risk of harm to people, the environment, and the economy. The National Flood and Coastal Erosion Risk Management Strategy for England describes what needs to be done by all risk management authorities involved in flood and coastal erosion risk management for the benefit of people and places.

Water companies should have a clear understanding of the full range of risks related to the services they provide, both now and in the future. Water companies should use adaptive approaches to maintain a focus on the long term and work with others to take a systems view to analyse risks and identify, develop, fund and deliver schemes to improve resilience and deliver wider benefits.

Water companies should:

strengthen the resilience of the water supply and waste water and drainage services provided to customers, as well as the resilience of natural assets (such as soils, freshwaters, coasts, estuaries, seas and species) to risks posed by extreme droughts and floods, climate change and population growth
help create climate resilient places and improve the resilience of communities to droughts, floods, and coastal change by implementing cost-effective, co-funded solutions

Climate change

Legislation and Duties

The Climate Change Act 2008 sets the legal framework for adaptation policy in the UK, preparing for the likely impacts of climate change. It legally binds the UK to ensure net greenhouse gas emissions are at least 100% lower than the 1990 levels by 2050 (net zero). Every 5 years the Act requires a UK Climate Change Risk Assessment (CCRA) to be conducted and a National Adaptation Programme (NAP) to be developed to tackle the most pressing climate change risks to England.

The Climate Change Act 2008 contains an adaptation reporting power that gives the Secretary of State the power to require water companies to report on:

their understanding of climate change risks
how these are being addressed
how these actions are being embedded within business plans

The Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme is a mandatory energy assessment and saving identification scheme. The scheme helps organisations recognise energy saving opportunities and operates in 4 yearly compliance phases.

Expectations: adaptation

Water companies should consider ways to contribute to the mitigation of rising water temperatures such as tree planting to increase shading. Water companies should also consider actions that contribute to mitigating the impact of low flows and rising temperatures on water quality, for instance reducing abstraction where it maintains cooler in-channel temperatures.

Water companies are expected to engage with the follow up NAP published in 2018 and ensure that Adaptation Reporting Power report commitments and planned actions are consistent with, and embedded within, their business plans.

Water companies are encouraged to participate in a programme of collaborative trials, identified within the WINEP, looking at low carbon waste water treatment technologies. These will provide beneficial knowledge where there is no alternative to using hard engineering treatment solutions. The use of evidenced low carbon, catchment and nature-based solutions to provide multiple environmental benefits, including climate change mitigation and adaptation, should be put in place where appropriate.

Expectations: nature-based solutions and resilience

Water companies are expected to adopt nature-based solutions as much as possible. This provides opportunities to maximise carbon storage and sequester carbon and promotes resilience and adaptation to future climate impacts.

Water companies are expected to monitor the success of nature-based solutions and share learning with partners to build the evidence base. Water companies are encouraged to work with others to overcome challenges around sharing and accepting risk around nature-based solutions, such that they can be promoted and adopted more widely.

Water companies should invest in the restoration of natural form and function of the catchments and wider landscapes in which they operate to help contribute to their resilience to the impacts of climate change.

Many of England’s rivers, lakes, coasts and estuaries are currently constrained by physical modification and lack the space and flexibility to adapt. Removing redundant physical modifications and restoring natural processes through, for example, natural recovery or assisted natural recovery can help build resilience and allow for adaptation. It can also provide essential corridors for migration of priority species between habitats, allowing them to adapt to a changing climate.

Restoring the natural environment not only has benefits for biodiversity but can also provide resilience benefits to the water company and customers through helping to sustain water in the natural system, improving water quality and offering potential for natural flood management.

The Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) river restoration programme approach shows how restoring natural form and function can work in practice. Examples of successful projects and additional information are:

Expectations: net zero

Water companies are expected to continue to contribute to the government’s emission reduction targets during PR24.

Water companies have committed to achieving net zero operational carbon emissions by 2030. This includes signing up to recognised carbon management schemes and committing to greenhouse gas emissions reductions.

Water companies, where possible, should aim to go beyond scope 1 and 2 operational emissions and include scope 3 embedded emissions in their net zero targets as per the Greenhouse Gas (GHG) protocol. However, focus should be on emissions reductions, before considering GHG removals, where possible.

Water companies are expected to implement ISO50001 to ensure Energy SOS compliance and effective energy management.

Expectations: understanding future climate risks

As the climate changes there may be fundamental alterations to the character of natural assets and the scale of pressures from natural hazards.

Water companies are expected to improve their understanding and deliver actions that mitigate the following risks of relevance to the water industry (UK Climate Change Risk Assessment (CCRA3)):

the impacts of climate change on the natural environment, including terrestrial, freshwater, coastal and marine species, forests and agriculture
an increase in the range, quantities and consequences of pests, pathogens and invasive species, negatively affecting natural assets
the risk of climate change impacts, especially more frequent flooding and coastal erosion, causing damage to water infrastructure such as reservoirs, dams, pipelines, water treatment plants and sewage treatment plants
a reduction in public water supplies due to increasing periods of water scarcity
increased severity and frequency of flooding of homes, communities and businesses

More frequent flooding could also impact on water treatment facilities leading to potential reductions in water quality, in turn impacting upon health.

Water companies should plan for the longer term across all parts of their business including adaptive planning for a range of future climate change scenarios. This will require water companies to improve their understanding of the impact of climate change associated with temperature rises, including risks to:

the natural assets they rely on
the provision of water and wastewater services, including surface water drainage
environmental protection

Water companies should use scenario planning, projections, and adaptation pathways to ensure climate change is factored into decision-making. Adopting an adaptation pathways approach can allow organisations to design flexible and robust strategies for managing uncertainties in the timing and magnitude of future climate impacts. This makes it possible to respond to a range of future change by combining low-regret, short-term actions (ones that are quick to implement and have benefits and are well evidenced) with more flexible longer-term options to adapt, if necessary.

The Environment Agency proposes to use a consistent future climate screening scenario in developing future strategies. Working together to build an evidence-based understanding of the likely effects of climate change and identifying and implementing low carbon solutions that address any negative environmental impacts that may arise is a priority for all. This should consider the impacts of climate change on assets, services, and activities, incorporating climate change into water resource management plans and flood risk assessments for new developments.

Water companies should ensure services are resilient to the increasing frequency of severe weather events and improve the natural resilience of the catchments in which they operate by contributing to the restoration of their natural function. Water companies should ensure that solutions they adopt also builds the resilience of biodiversity in catchments, river systems, transitional and coastal waters and water bodies.

Drainage resilience and storm overflows

Drainage and wastewater management plans (DWMPs) are the new way to plan for the future of drainage, waste water and environmental water quality. They set out long-term aspirations and medium-term investment needs for drainage and wastewater. They offer water companies opportunities to take forward adaptive approaches with other risk management authorities. DWMPs are critical for identifying solutions for communities that suffer surface water and sewer flood risks.

The production of DWMPs is being led by water companies. However, all organisations that have interests and responsibilities relating to drainage, flooding and protection of the environment have a part to play in their creation. By planning together, organisations are also more likely to identify and deliver solutions that protect the environment and communities.

Legislation, forthcoming legal provisions, and duties

The Environment Act 2021 includes legal duties to tackle storm overflow discharges and their impact to help protect our waters including duties on water companies to:

reduce the frequency, duration and volume of storm overflow discharges in line with future government directions
progressively reduce the adverse impacts storm overflows have on the environment and public health
continuously monitor the receiving water quality potentially affected by storm overflows
produce DWMPs (the mechanism to fulfil the Environment Act 2021 duty to develop drainage and sewerage management plans) to help deliver more of the actions needed to address the risks sewerage assets may pose to the environment
publish data on storm overflow operation on an annual basis and make spill information available in near real time

Expectations

Draft DWMPs will be published by June 2022. The Environment Agency expects these to include solutions that can be taken forward for delivery by water companies in their next 5-year business plan. Water companies and other risk management authorities should work together to manage water in a more integrated way to improve flood resilience, enhance the natural environment and deliver value for customers.

DWMPs should be used to quantify the current and future risks to, and from water company assets, and their interaction with other’s drainage assets, seeking opportunities for co-planning and delivery and securing sustainable solutions.

Climate change and new housing and business developments will place greater pressure on drainage networks unless mitigation action is taken. Water companies should work closely with local planning authorities, lead local flood authorities and developers to encourage the better management of both foul and surface water in new and redevelopments. New sewerage systems should be designed to cope with exceedance events.

The recommendations from the Storm Overflow Taskforce and the outputs from DWMPs should inform water company business plans. In line with government expectations there needs to be far less reliance on storm overflows. The frequency and volume of sewage discharges from storm overflows should be significantly reduced so they operate infrequently. Overflows that do the most harm, or impact on the most sensitive and highest amenity sites, should be prioritised first.

Water companies should accelerate progress in this area and demonstrate leadership to eliminate harm from storm overflows.

Water companies should consider sustainable drainage systems as a default option to reduce the pressure on sewerage networks, supporting wider environmental objectives such as biodiversity and local amenity.

Event duration monitoring should be maintained on all storm overflows. Water companies must ensure compliance with permitted flow to full treatment settings.

Networks and wastewater treatment works should be maintained to reduce the risk of future failures and with enough headroom to meet future water quality standards.

Risk management authorities working in partnership, within and across catchments, can achieve efficiencies and secure additional outcomes that benefit customers, communities, and the environment. Publicly available drainage and wastewater management plans should demonstrate collaborative and integrated planning and delivery with and alongside organisations that have responsibilities relating to drainage, flooding, and protection of the environment.

Water companies are encouraged to go beyond the statutory minimum, where this benefits the environment and has the support of customers. By prioritising action, working in partnership, and looking at innovative ways to reduce the frequency and volume of discharges, water companies can actively influence customer and business behaviours. For example, manufacturer and retailers’ behaviours through the ‘flushability’ standard, developed by Water UK, has the potential to reduce sewer flooding and pollution.

Water companies should use their knowledge of drainage systems to develop integrated catchment approaches and start to tackle the issue of replacing intergenerational assets. As water company infrastructure ages, this places acute and chronic pressures on its continued performance.

Water companies should include within their drainage and wastewater management plans asset condition, particularly where this might have chronic impact on its performance such as ingress of groundwater infiltration to sewers. Water companies should prevent these contributing to hydraulic capacity limitations of the network or regulatory compliance.

Ecosystem and natural function

Legislation and duties

Thriving plants and wildlife is one of the goals of the 25 Year Environment Plan which include:

restoring 75% of the total area of terrestrial and freshwater protected sites to favourable condition
creating or restoring 500,000 hectares of wildlife-rich habitat outside of protected sites, as part of a Nature Recovery Network, to more effectively link and buffer existing protected sites and landscapes

Expectations

Water companies have an important role to play in preventing further damage to the environment, as well as enabling its recovery and enhancement. The status of water-dependent biodiversity is linked to the health of the wider catchment.

Improving the resilience of ecosystems, alongside public water and wastewater systems is equally important. The long-term functioning of ecosystems, as well the natural assets the water industry and people rely on, should be protected, maintained, and enhanced.

Water company activity should restore, re-connect, and enhance freshwater, estuarine and marine habitats and recover priority species. This will ensure that natural assets used for, or impacted by, water company activities are sustainable into the future. This is both in terms of ecological functions and processes and in terms of their ability to continue to provide (or offer more) benefits to people - ecosystem services resilience.

Flood Resilience

The National Flood and Coastal Erosion Risk Management Strategy for England (the National FCERM Strategy) frames resilience in terms of the capacity of people and places to plan for, better protect, respond to, and recover from flooding and coastal change. Strategic Objective 2.7 of the National FCERM Strategy states that by 2030, water companies will plan for their infrastructure to be resilient to flooding and coastal change.

The strategy is supported by specific measures that address drainage and wastewater management plans engagement, a joint approach to resilience and adaptive planning with other risk management authorities.

The National FCERM Strategy Action Plan explains the actions risk management authorities will deliver to achieve these measures. It is updated annually.

To create a nation more resilient to future flood and coastal erosion risk, the risk of harm to people, the environment, and the economy needs to be reduced. This includes increasing the resilience of critical infrastructure to prevent disruption to services and to protect people and the environment.

Legislation and duties

As risk management authorities, water companies, when exercising their flood risk management functions, must act in a manner consistent with the National FCERM Strategy for England and have regard to local flood risk management strategies as developed by lead local flood authorities. This means water companies should co-operate with other risk management authorities in exercising their flood risk management functions. This includes the timely provision of flood risk information, data sharing, and working jointly on local strategies, plans and local flooding investigations.

Under section 94 of the Water Industry Act 1991, water and sewerage companies must ensure their area is effectually drained. The Act places a duty on Ofwat to secure the long-term resilience of water and wastewater systems including by promoting long term planning by the companies.

The Water Act 2014 confirmed sustainable drainage approaches to reduce the amount of surface water in sewers to manage sewer flooding can be used.

Water companies must also take account of requirements set out in the:

Flood Risk Regulations 2009
Security and Emergency Measures Direction 1998
Civil Contingencies Act 2004

Expectations

Water companies are expected to set out in their business plans priority actions for ensuring existing and new assets, and systems, are resilient for the long term. Business plans must be based on a clear and systematic understanding of service and system risks and include a range of options for reducing the likelihood of future service failures.

The use of sustainable drainage systems and nature-based solutions should be considered wherever possible to reduce reliance on grey infrastructure and to provide multiple benefits. There should be a clear line of sight between water company resilience risk assessments and the options within business plans.

Water companies should contribute to partnership schemes to reduce flood risk (across all sources) to communities and themselves. As beneficiaries of flood resilience schemes water companies should have a clear and systematic approach to assessing partnership opportunities.

Water companies should demonstrate how they are taking a strategic approach to contributing to flood resilience schemes to maximise benefits to customers, the economy, and the environment. The number of jointly funded flood resilience schemes should increase compared to PR19.

Water company use of existing assets and planned future assets should seek to deliver wider benefits to communities and the environment, where appropriate. For example, where technically feasible, water companies may wish to consider operating water supply reservoirs to reduce fluvial flood risk downstream, provided there is no detriment to customers and the environment, and in the wider catchment that this is balanced with managing drought risk and longer-term forecasting.

Water companies should consider the use of natural flood management techniques to slow, store and filter flood water which can provide a cost-effective way of keeping surface water out of sewers and increasing the resilience of networks, and surrounding communities. Catchment approaches of this type can also provide additional biodiversity, water quality and water resource benefits, as well as carbon benefits when compared to engineered solutions.

Public access

Legislation and Duties

The Equality Act 2010 requires businesses to make reasonable changes to services and this would include making changes to structures on land to improve access.

Duties to further the natural beauty and rural amenity are also included within the general recreational and environmental duties placed on relevant undertakers in the Water Industry Act 1991 (as amended), and a duty to preserve access is required within section 3(3)(a), (b) and (c) of that Act.

Expectations

Water companies should improve their understanding of how simple changes to structures, such as gates and signage, can improve the accessibility of greenspaces and water. They should develop plans to make all structures on rights of way and access land, accessible. Stiles must be replaced with gaps or gates and be compliant with BS 5709 (2018).

Water companies should consider where additional public access to previously inaccessible land and water, could be provided on foot, bike, and horse, and dedicate such access in perpetuity.

Water companies should consider where additional rights of access for cyclists and horse riders could be provided on footpaths, access land and common land.

Water companies should consider where they can facilitate access to water for both swimmers and paddlers, both along watercourses and by providing access points.

Water companies should allow public access for the widest possible range of activities, for instance walking, running, cycling, horse riding, carriage driving, caving, paddling, wild swimming, canoeing, sailing, wind surfing, boating, angling, fishing, bird watching, paragliding and hang-gliding, by disabled and non-disabled people of all ages.

Wherever possible access should be provided by means of marked paths for walkers (including the disabled) and, where appropriate, for other users, including equestrians and cyclists. Consideration should be given to the formal dedication of permitted paths and actions to notify the public of access and permitted paths including to Ordnance Survey.

Water companies should ensure that all areas with public access are publicised, signed and waymarked, with information about public safety, water quality and nature conservation provided where appropriate.

Water companies should consider actions to improve public access, the costs and benefits of the action and they should have the appropriate customer support.

Water resources planning and security of supply

The environment is dependent on sufficient water in rivers, lakes, wetlands and aquifers. Water abstraction can cause damage to the ecology and habitats supported by rivers, lakes, wetlands, estuaries, and groundwater.

Water companies have a significant role to play to ensure resilient supplies and an improved water environment.

The scale of the environmental challenge is set out in the national framework for water resources published by the Environment Agency in 2020. It includes the need for water companies to be resilient to a 1 in 500-year drought, with the aim to meet this by 2030. This target is supported by the government’s National Infrastructure Strategy. This strategy encourages a collaborative, cross-sector, regional planning approach to increase water supply. It also states that an additional 25% of the current daily volume put into our public water supply will be needed in England by 2050 to meet future pressures on public supply. The regional groups need to work with the scenarios in the national framework for water resources to develop the long-term environmental destination, whilst accounting for predicted climate change impacts, and set it out in the regional plans. Water company action needs to support achieving the long-term environmental destination.

Water demand reduction is essential. Water companies need to reduce the leakage from their network infrastructure.

Legislation and duties

Water companies are responsible for ensuring that their water resources are adequate to meet the present and future demands of customers. The duty to prepare and maintain a water resources management plan is set out in the Water Industry Act 1991.

In preparing and publishing a water resources management plan, water companies must take account of the Water Resources Management Plan Regulations 2007 and directions given by government. The plans should reflect and align with relevant regional water resource plans and explain how these inform the preferred programme.

The duty to prepare, consult upon and adopt a drought plan is set out in the Water Industry Act 1991. Water companies must take account of directions given by government whey they prepare and publish a drought plan. It should set out the short-term operational steps needed as drought progresses to manage customer demands, enhance available supplies, and minimise environmental impacts.

Expectations: drought plans

Water companies must ensure that agreed up-to-date plans are in place to manage drought and minimise environmental impacts. Water resources management plans should identify when drought management interventions are needed to manage plausible droughts.

Water companies should engage with their customers to determine the frequency of planned supply restrictions to reduce demand during droughts (the ‘level of service’ that will be provided).

Expectations: reducing demand and leakage

Water resources management plans must show how water companies will ensure efficient use of water. A twin track approach to improving the resilience of water supplies should be taken. Investment in new supplies should complement measures to reduce the demand for water. Water companies should consider using new innovative techniques to assess supply and demand, and to inform decision-making.

The ministerial statement published on 1 July 2021 includes the water companies’ commitment to deliver a 50% reduction in leakage (from 2017 to 2018 levels) by 2050. The government expects this to be met and has required water companies to plan on this basis. Water companies are expected to set challenging targets for leakage informed by customer views and the potential for innovation.

Other actions set out in the ministerial statement, along with water companies’ own actions, should work towards reducing personal water consumption to 110 litres per person per day by 2050.

Water company business plans should include a long-term commitment to reduce demand. For instance, by considering the increase of meter installation. This would help reduce demand and leakage even where they are not used to set water bills. Water companies should also consider how to work with consumers to encourage them to purchase water saving technology and secure behaviour change to reduce unnecessary water use.

To assess the costs and benefits of metering water companies should use the latest research on the:

effectiveness of metering programmes
use of tariffs
effectiveness of retailers in the non-household water market in England (and Scotland) in reducing demand

They should also assess synergies with other regulated markets.

Water companies in seriously water stressed areas may implement wider water metering programmes where it is shown within their water resources management plan that there is customer support and it is cost effective to do so.

Even in areas not designated to be in serious water stress, the wider benefits of metering for managing demand and reducing leakage should be evaluated and implemented where it represents value for money over the long-term.

Given the wider benefits of smart meters they should become the standard meter installed. Otherwise justification for using older technology should be provided.

Expectations: regional water resource planning

Water companies should take a strategic approach to water resources planning that represents best value to customers, the environment, and society over the long term. They should plan for at least the next 25 years in their water resources management plan.

Water companies should show leadership by collaborating with customers, partners, and regulators to develop a strong understanding of future needs. This should draw on the latest information from collaborative projects, and the relevant regional water resources group, to build consensus on proposed solutions through regional water resource plans.

Water companies should consider all options to meet the supply and demand balance, including working with other water companies and sectors. This includes reviewing current operations to confirm whether they are the most appropriate option.

Solutions to achieve the water resources management plan outcomes, and protect the environment over the long-term, must form the supply-demand component of business plans. Any material difference between the water resources management plan and business plan should be justified. The environmental and social impacts of feasible options should be considered.

Water company business plans should balance:

managing demand
improving how water resources are allocated
developing new resources

Water companies should effectively engage with their customers on any new options brought forward.

Expectations: water resources management plans and business plans

To comply with the statutory requirements and government policy, water companies should produce their water resources management plan in accordance with the water resources planning guideline.

When preparing the water resources management plan, water companies must assess water resource vulnerability to future pressures such as climate change and population growth. They should consider all options to balance supply and demand, whilst making sure there is a reliable water supply for people and businesses.

Sustainability changes identified in the WINEP should be included in the water resources management plan supply-demand baseline and factored into their business plan options.

Expectations: water resource security of supply

Solutions to resolve existing environmental problems caused by abstraction and to prevent deterioration in the condition of the environment should be put in place where required.

Primary actions are to reduce abstraction to restore a more natural flow regime. In addition, restoring the natural physical form and how the river and wider catchment functions can complement flow recovery measures and deliver additional ecological benefit. A more naturally functioning catchment can contribute to resilient supply by helping to sustain water in the system which also helps to restore biodiversity.

Expectations: water supply and environmental resilience

Resilience and raising environmental ambition are at the heart of the government’s long-term thinking.

Water company plans should properly examine the value of resilience to customers, take account of customers’ views and identify what actions will be taken to reduce risk now and in the future.

Water companies are expected to thoroughly assess the vulnerability of their water supply system to likely climate change, predicted droughts and to other non-drought water supply hazards. For example, flooding and freeze-thaw impacts. In doing so, the long-term needs of customers and government direction on levels of service should be considered, as well as costs and benefits. Solutions to support meeting resilience of a 1 in 500 year drought by 2039 should be delivered.

Water company plans should protect and improve the environment, considering both the current and future challenges. This might mean, for example, tighter environmental protection for some sensitive habitats, such as wetlands and intertidal areas, and vulnerable rivers, such as chalk rivers, to enable them to meet environmental objectives in the future.

Water companies should include abstractions in Ofwat’s Abstraction Incentive Mechanism, where reductions in abstraction at low flows would benefit the environment. Specific consideration should be given to abstraction in chalk catchments.

Water companies should show leadership on the issue of environmental flows by working with stakeholders and other abstractors to improve understanding.

Water companies should consider whether their abstractions are truly sustainable, looking across a catchment as a whole. They should consider investment in integrated catchment schemes to improve drought resilience and water quality.

Water companies should consider water trading and shared multiple-use developments that bring resilience to other sectors, such as agriculture. They should demonstrate that their decisions reflect the value of the environment using a natural capital approach.

Question 4

Section 4: List of legislation and duties

Accepted Answer

Water companies should be aware that further changes to the policy landscape are expected, as well as future changes to environmental targets. They should also be clear that this document does not reference all water company related legal obligations, government targets and statutory requirements. Even when not specifically referenced in this document water companies are expected to abide by them.

A thriving natural environment

The Environment Act 2021 makes provision for targets, plans and policies for improving the natural environment. This includes air quality, biodiversity, water, and waste reduction and resource efficiency.

Under the Act, government is developing new, legally binding targets for water environment improvement. The new targets will provide the framework to drive improvement on the most significant pressures on the water environment. They will also enable significant progress towards meeting the goals set out in the 25 Year Environment Plan. Other targets, such as the species abundance target and protecting 30% of our land will also contribute to reducing water pollution.

The WFD Regulations establish a legal framework for managing the water environment. Along with implementing the requirements of the Water Framework Directive in relation to:

characterising river basin districts
monitoring water bodies
setting environmental objectives
establishing programmes of measures
producing and publishing river basin management plans

Under the Water Resources Act 1991 most abstractions or impoundment of water require a licence. However, certain exemptions apply. The Environment Agency’s abstraction licensing strategies (CAMS process) provide further information about how much water is available in different areas.

Under the Water Industry Act 1991 water companies are required to prepare water resources management plans and drought plans to show how they will manage and develop water resources to supply customers. The policy paper on ‘Drought management in England’ provides information on how the Environment Agency works with government, water companies and others to manage water resources during a drought in England.

Bathing water quality is assessed using the Bathing Water Regulations 2013 which includes the classification of waters into 4 categories. They are excellent, good, sufficient, and poor. Guidance on bathing water information and signage rules for local councils includes what information must be displayed at designated bathing waters.

The UK Marine Policy Statement (UK MPS) is the framework for preparing marine plans and taking decisions affecting the marine environment. It has been prepared and adopted for the purposes of section 44 of the Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009. The Guidance to the UK Marine Policy Statement explains how references to EU law in the UK MPS should be interpreted following the UK’s withdrawal from the EU.

The collection and treatment of waste water from homes and industry is regulated through the Urban Waste Water Treatment Regulations 1994. Powers to permit discharges, with conditions to protect the receiving waters, are available under the Environmental Permitting (England and Wales) Regulations 2016.

Shellfish protection is now ensured by the WFD Regulations.

The Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017 (as amended) includes specific provision for the protection of Habitats sites. There is a duty to protect, conserve and restore Habitats sites. Competent authorities must take action to help protect, conserve and restore the protected habitats and species of Habitats sites.

The Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 (as amended by the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 requires public bodies, including water companies, to take reasonable steps, consistent with the proper exercise of their functions to further the conservation and enhancement of Sites of Special Scientific Interest. The guidance Sites of special scientific interest: public body responsibilities sets out the responsibilities of public bodies when carrying out or approving works on or near sites of special scientific interest (SSSIs).

The Natural Environmental and Rural Communities Act 2006 places a duty on public bodies, including water companies, to have regard, so far as is consistent with the proper exercise of their functions, to conserve biodiversity. Conserving biodiversity in this context includes restoring or enhancing a population or habitat. The guidance Biodiversity duty: public authority duty to have regard to conserving biodiversity sets out information for public authorities to understand what the biodiversity duty is and how to meet it when carrying out all activities.

Section 125 of the Marine and Coastal Access Act (2009) applies a general duty to public authorities to exercise their functions in a way that best furthers the conservation objectives of a MCZ or, where that is not possible, least hinders them. There is also an obligation to notify Natural England where a public authority’s function might significantly hinder the MCZ’s conservation objectives or significantly affect an MCZ. The relevant public authorities must take account of this duty in the assessment of the water company statutory plans including drought plans and water resource management plans. The act also established Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authorities in England, who can introduce byelaws for the regulation of sea fisheries that have an impact on migratory fish.

Relevant authorities (including water companies as a statutory undertaker) are to have regard to the purposes of National Parks (Section 11A (2) of the 1949 Act) and the similar duties towards Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONBs) (Section 85 of the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000) and the Broads (Section 17A of the Norfolk and Suffolk Broads Act 1988). Duties to further the natural beauty and rural amenity are also included within the general recreational and environmental duties placed on relevant undertakers in the Water Industry Act 1991 (as amended).

Natural England Standing Advice for Protected Species helps local planning authorities and others including water companies to better understand the impact of their operations and development on protected or priority species, should they be identified as an issue at particular developments or plans. This also sets out when, following receipt of survey information, the authority (or the undertaker in regards of the exercise of permitted development rights) should undertake further consultation with Natural England.

The Water Supply (Water Quality) Regulations 2016 and the Private Water Supplies (England) Regulations 2016 makes sure that the water supplied is safe to drink.

The Nitrate Pollution Prevention Regulations 2015 (as amended) are designed to reduce water pollution caused by nitrates from agriculture sources and prevent further such pollution occurring. There are rules farmers and landowners must follow if their land is in a nitrate vulnerable zone (NVZ). The Reduction and Prevention of Agricultural Diffuse Pollution (England) Regulations 2018 set rules requiring good farming practice, so that farmers manage their land both to avoid water pollution and to benefit their business.

EU Invasive Alien Species Regulation 1143/2014 covers prevention, early detection and rapid eradication, and management of invasive species.

EC Eel Regulation 1100/2007 aims to establish measures for the recovery of the stock of European eel. The Eels (England and Wales) Regulations 2009 implement the eel passage measures of the Eel Regulation. Eel and elver passes: design and build sets out guidance for fish passes where existing obstructions prevent the safe passage of eel and elver travelling up stream.

Salmon and Freshwater Fisheries Act 1975 provides various powers for the protection and management of fisheries, including the introductions of orders that limit the number of nets fishing in a public fishery.

Expected performance and compliance

Environmental Permitting (England and Wales) Regulations 2016 provide a consolidated regime of environmental permitting in England and Wales.

The groundwater protection position statements set out how the Environment Agency carries out government policy for groundwater and adopts a risk-based approach where legislation allows.

The Sludge (Use in Agriculture) Regulations 1989 as amended protect people, animals, plants, and the environment against the possible harmful effects from the uncontrolled spreading of sewage sludge on agricultural land. The Sewage sludge in agriculture: code of practice provides further information.

The Reservoirs Act 1975 ensures adequate structural safety in the design, construction, operation and maintenance of large, raised reservoirs. The Environment Agency is the enforcement authority for the Act in England.

The UK government introduced secondary legislation under the EU Withdrawal Act 2018 to implement the EU’s Industrial Emissions Directive to take an integrated approach to controlling pollution to air, water and land, and set challenging industry standards for the most polluting industries. The aim is to prevent and reduce harmful industrial emissions, while promoting the use of techniques that reduce pollutant emissions and that are energy and resource efficient. Further guidance can be found at: Industrial emissions standards and best available techniques: Industrial Emissions Directive (IED).

Resilience for the environment and customers

The Water Resources Act 1991 makes it a requirement to have an abstraction licence to take water from surface waters and groundwater. The Water Industry Act 1991 which requires water companies to prepare water resources management plans and drought plans was amended by the Water Act 2014 to add provisions relating to improving resilience.

The water resources planning guideline provides guidance to water companies in England and Wales to use for developing their water resources management plan and is relevant to those producing regional plans.

The policy paper on Drought management for England sets out how the Environment Agency works with government, water companies and others to manage water resources during a drought in England.

The Environment Act 2021 includes legal duties to tackle storm overflow discharges and their impact, to help protect our waters and includes duties on water companies.

Under the Flood and Water Management Act 2010 there is a duty to co-operate, in the exercise of companies’ effectual drainage functions (section 94 Water Industry Act 1991).

The Flood Risk Regulations 2009 assesses the risk of flooding, maps its potential impact and plans objectives and measures to reduce potential and significant flood risk. This requires the preparation of preliminary flood risk assessments, flood hazard and flood risk maps and the production of Flood Risk Management Plans.

The Flood and Water Management Act 2010 gave authorities new and amended powers and duties in managing flood and coastal erosion risk. Government guidance on River maintenance, flooding and coastal erosion gives further information.

National Planning Policy Framework states that planning authorities should consider the impact of climate change on water supply in their local plans.

The Environmental Permitting (England and Wales) Regulations 2016 provide the Environment Agency with regulatory control (through flood risk activity permitting) of the construction, alteration, or repair of structures in, over or under any main river.

The Land Drainage Act 1991 requires that any work carried out by third parties, that may impact on flow conveyance, is subject to a land drainage consent from the relevant authority.

The Environmental Impact Assessment (Land Drainage Improvement Works) Regulations 1999 require an Environmental Impact Assessment for certain activities to determine the likelihood that a proposed project (development or other activity) will have significant environmental effects.

Trade effluent controls under Water Industry Act 1991 regulate discharges and drainage arrangements from certain industrial and trade sites.

The Water Resources Act 1991 provides power to the Environment Agency to make byelaws necessary for:

the efficient working of any drainage system
regulating the effects of any drainage system on the environment

Glossary

A glossary for this document can be found on Catchment Data Explorer.

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Applies to England

Section 1: A thriving natural environment

Bathing waters

Legislation and duties

Expectations

Chemicals

Legislation and duties

Expectations

Drinking waters

Legislation and duties

Expectations

Eels

Legislation and duties

Expectations

Environment Act 2021 targets

Legislation, forthcoming legal provisions, and duties

Habitats sites and Ramsar sites

Legislation and duties

Expectations

Freshwater fish

Legislation and duties

Expectations

Healthy and resilient fish stocks

Expectations

Invasive non-native species

Legislation and duties

Expectations

Local Nature Recovery Strategies

Legislation, forthcoming legal provisions, and duties

Expectations

Marine Conservation Zones

Legislation and duties

Expectations

Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act 2006 and biodiversity priorities

Legislation, forthcoming legal provisions, and duties

Expectations

Salmon and sea trout

Legislation and duties

Expectations

Shellfish waters

Legislation and duties

Expectations

Sites of Special Scientific Interest

Legislation and duties

Expectations

Urban wastewater

Legislation and duties

Expectations

Water body status (river basin management plan objectives)

Legislation and duties

Expectations

Section 2: Expected performance and compliance

Performance

Legislation and duties

Expectations

Sludge

Legislation and duties

Expectations

Section 3: Resilience for the environment and customers

Climate change

Legislation and Duties

Expectations: adaptation

Expectations: nature-based solutions and resilience

Expectations: net zero

Expectations: understanding future climate risks

Drainage resilience and storm overflows

Legislation, forthcoming legal provisions, and duties

Expectations

Ecosystem and natural function

Legislation and duties

Expectations

Flood Resilience

Legislation and duties

Expectations

Public access

Legislation and Duties

Expectations

Water resources planning and security of supply

Legislation and duties