Policy paper

Water abstraction plan: Catchment focus

Updated 27 July 2021

This was published under the 2016 to 2019 May Conservative government

Part of the water abstraction plan

This document provides further information on proposals set out in the abstraction plan to develop a stronger catchment focus. This is about bringing together the Environment Agency, abstractors and catchment partnerships to identify and implement local solutions to existing pressures and to prepare for the future. It should be read alongside the abstraction plan and supplementary sections on ‘environment’ and ‘abstraction licensing service’.

1. The challenge

We recognise that patterns of abstraction have to change to reduce the effect it has on the environment, see the ‘environment’ document for more information. At the same time we want to support water users who are looking to develop and grow their businesses. This is against a backdrop of pressures from climate change and increasing water demand.

The challenges of water availability and the impact of abstraction on the environment are complex and linked. The first stage is therefore to develop a shared understanding of the issues locally. Once this is in place it is possible to build on this understanding to develop consensus on solutions.

2. Our approach

The Environment Agency will work with abstractors and existing catchment groups, such as catchment partnerships, to update abstraction licensing strategies in priority catchments. These strategies will detail solutions to remaining environmental issues and, where relevant, set out approaches to help abstractors access the water they need to enable these solutions.

Figure 1 outlines the five stages envisaged to bring together the Environment Agency, abstractors and catchment partnerships to identify and implement local solutions as part of the catchment focus.

Stage one is to engage with abstractors and local groups to fully understand their needs and environmental pressures. This will start with the current assessment of water availability but potential solutions could include using sound evidence to improve this understanding. This stage will require a combination of engagement and analytical work to understand the opportunities and constraints to water resources management locally.

Stage two co-develops a list of potential solutions to environmental pressures and / or shortages of supply and seeks consensus on an approach that can be implemented relatively quickly and voluntarily. We expect that some of these approaches will be innovative and new and we want those involved to feel empowered to trial these and monitor results.

Stage three agrees and captures the approach in an updated abstraction licensing strategy for each catchment. This strategy will set out environmental actions and, if relevant, solutions to improve access to water.

Stage four implements the agreed approach by amending licences, setting up formal water resources management agreements or changing behaviour.

Stage five evaluates the success of the process and the solutions and applies lessons learnt to other catchments.

3. What this will produce

Each catchment already has an abstraction licensing strategy. These are available online at gov.uk. They were introduced primarily to help abstractors know where water is likely to be available in advance of making an application. As a result, they currently focus on how much water is available for new applications in a given catchment or sub-catchment.

To capture the water management decisions made as part of the catchment focus, the Environment Agency will update these abstraction licensing strategies. This will transform the documents so they include an agreed, detailed approach to addressing the challenges facing the catchment, whether these challenges are environmental or related to water availability.

When the Environment Agency updates abstraction licensing strategies they will focus on:

• achieving environmental goals
• improving access to water

3.1 Approaches available

We want those involved in this approach to have the freedom they need to develop the right solutions. In support of this we believe that many of the approaches set out in the abstraction reform consultation can play an important role. Many of these have the potential to support both the goals of improving the environment and improving access to water when tailored to the specific local context.

Table 1 outlines potential approaches and the benefits these could have.

	Improve access to water	Improve the environment
Introducing controls on more licences to better protect the environment, particularly at low flows	Where restrictions are necessary they can be applied more fairly to avoid singling out those irrigating crops	Improves environmental protection, particularly at low flows
Capping licences to prevent increased abstraction damaging the environment	Reducing water held on licences that is not needed can enable water trading by reducing environmental risk and simplifying trading rules	Protects the environment from future increases in abstraction
Fine tuning how surface water and groundwater sources are used together	Making smarter use of resources allows more water to be abstracted within environmental constraints	Manages environmental pressures, particularly local pressures, such as saline intrusion
Supporting rapid water trading to allow abstractors to share access to water quickly	Abstractors are able to get access to water when they need it	Unused water may be removed in order to support this, reducing environmental risks
Allowing some winter abstractors more flexibility to take water at the highest flows in the summer	Provides additional access to water at higher flows in the summer, making better use of storage	Boosting storage can reduce abstraction pressures at low flows
Providing on-line information on river flows	Abstractors can plan their water use more effectively and be clearer on when they can and can’t abstract	Improves compliance with abstraction conditions so that abstraction fits more closely with environmental needs
Managing water discharges to benefit abstractors downstream who depend on them	Gives reliability and consistency to support planning and investment	Can contribute to managing river flows to support ecology

4. Where this will take place

This work will be prioritised where it is needed most. As part of this the Environment Agency will:

• start working in four priority catchments in April 2018 to test both the approach to engagement that we’ve outlined and the potential solutions available to improve access to water and protect the environment. As well as testing approaches, this work will also bring improvements to those operating in the relevant catchments. By 2020 the Environment Agency will have published 4 updated abstraction licensing strategies detailing the outcome of this work
• establish an additional six catchments with challenging environmental impacts from abstraction and access to water issues - publishing outcomes in updated abstraction licensing strategies by 2021
• update all abstraction licence strategies prior to 2027 as part of the third cycle of river basin management plans

4.1 Priority catchments

In May 2018, we selected the first four priority catchments, focussing on access to water. They are:

• Idle & Torne in East Midlands
• The South Forty Foot in Lincolnshire and Northamptonshire (also known as The Black Sluice)
• East Suffolk in East Anglia (Suffolk’s Holistic Water Management Project)
• Cam & Ely Ouse in East Anglia

The Environment Agency prioritised these catchments because there is:

• unmet demand for water either continuously or at particular times of the year, such as when flows are low or demand for water is high
• potential to share water between abstractors to meet that demand, for example, potential for making better use of stored water or a new resource that is being planned
• a critical mass of abstractors, for example, a water abstractor group or catchment partnership to work with the Environment Agency and consider alternative approaches to water management

We are now working with abstractors and stakeholders to see how innovative abstraction management approaches could address the challenges in these catchments.

As well as demonstrating a catchment based approach, these catchments offer the opportunity to trial the abstraction reform tools described in the Plan. They will also allow us to develop and trial innovative ideas from abstractors and partners. We will also look to address unsustainable abstraction. Six additional priority catchments have been established in 2019, they are:

• Arun and Western Rother in West Sussex
• Otter in Devon
• Brue in Somerset
• Wye in West Midlands
• Alt and Crossens in Lancashire
• Till and Tweed in Northumberland

4.2 Catchments facing environmental pressures

Sustainable abstraction is vital to ensure that river flows and groundwater levels support a healthy ecology, are resilient to drought and provide reliable water that supports economic growth. The Environment Agency will use its existing regulatory powers to the full to address unsustainable abstraction, see the supplementary information document on the ‘environment’. However, in some catchments, we will need to take a different, catchment based approach. This will be trialled in the priority catchments where abstraction is causing flows to regularly dip below environmental requirements or where groundwater is over abstracted, such as the ‘red’ unsustainably abstracted water bodies described in the environment annex.

5. Supporting local engagement

We recognise that these proposals depend on support from dedicated local groups. For example, each catchment has a catchment partnership in place to pursue integrated solutions to environmental challenges at catchment scale. These catchment partnerships are supported by a national support group. We will work with the national support group to set up a dedicated water resources sub-group to support catchment partnerships. This group will be tasked with:

• supporting catchment partnerships to bring environmental improvements and to improve access to water
• sharing best practice from catchment partnerships already working on water resources
• reviewing progress and recommending improvements to the approach taken

This group will have membership representing the spectrum of different abstractors and other interested groups. We recognise that groups, such as water abstractor groups, or less formal groups with an interest in water management are also operating and we want this work to be open to all.

5.1 The role of the water industry

Water companies have a valuable role to play supporting this work. Many are currently planning investigations as part of the water industry national environment programme (WINEP). These investigations provide an opportunity for the companies to engage with catchment partners to find innovative solutions to the challenges they face. We believe that engaging with catchment groups will help water companies find the most efficient solutions to the challenges they face as well as benefiting other local groups.

By clearly setting out the actions needed in abstraction licensing strategies the Environment Agency will help water companies plan for licence changes in their water resource management plans. Engagement in catchment partnerships will also help water companies understand the potential resource needs of others alongside their own, which could lead to the development of more efficient multi-sector solutions to improve access to water.

6. Supporting solutions

As well as supporting the engagement process itself we also want to clear the path for the solutions likely to arise.

6.1 Encouraging water storage

Grants are available now for arable and horticultural businesses via the countryside productivity scheme. These can be used to improve farm productivity through more efficient use of water for irrigation, and to secure water supplies for crop irrigation by the construction of on-farm reservoirs.

Grant funding can help pay for:

• construction of a water storage reservoir (above or below ground) filled by either peak flow surface water abstraction, borehole or rain water harvested from buildings
• abstraction points, pump and pipework to fill the reservoir
• irrigation pumps, controls or underground water distribution main
• water metering equipment
• best practice application equipment such as boom or trickle irrigation
• software and sensors to optimise water application

The deadline for application is 29 June 2018. Grants are for a minimum of £35,000 and can cover up to 40% of the eligible costs of a project. More information is available.

As well as providing grants the government is committed to making the process of developing a reservoir easier. This is why, in July 2017, government issued guidance on whether planning permission is required for the development of reservoirs.

6.2 Supporting the development of nationally significant infrastructure

At the same time as supporting the development of small-scale water storage and efficiency, government is also supporting the development of nationally significant infrastructure by developing a national policy statement (NPS).

The NPS will streamline the planning system for new major water infrastructure and make it easier for water companies to build schemes such as new transfers or reservoirs where they are identified in their long term water resource management plans.

By supporting the development of water supply infrastructure we will increase the range of options on the table for abstractors as they engage with water companies locally.

7. Tracking and reporting on progress

We believe that by collaborating at a catchment scale we will secure consensus-based changes, achieve quicker environmental improvements and provide opportunities to boost access to water. This will help us prepare for the impacts of climate change. If this approach has not brought significant improvements by 2021, and abstractors are not engaging, we will look at alternative approaches to increase the pace of change.

The Environment Agency will keep stakeholders informed of its progress by reporting against the actions in this plan. We will report to parliament on progress with abstraction reform by May 2019 and will also report progress in updated River Basin Management Plans (RBMP) in December 2021. The Environment Agency classifies and reports on water body status every 3 years. It will next classify water body status in 2019.

The Environment Agency will also update abstraction licensing strategies to show the solutions it has agreed with local abstractors and partners to address unsustainable abstraction. It will publish 10 new look strategies by 2021. Following this, it will update all remaining strategies by 2027 as part of the third cycle of river basin management plans.