Last week saw a number of new announcements from Defra. These included:

• UK and Welsh governments sign water powers agreement. UK Government introduces measure to safeguard water supply for England & Wales;
• Protocol to safeguard water resources, water supply and water quality for consumers in England and Wales. This “will safeguard water resources, water supply and water quality for consumers on both sides of the border”. It will come into force on 1 April 2018; and
• Guidance to the Environment Agency on how the regulator should decide whether or not a river or watercourse is treated as a ‘main river’.

Defra also responded to the recent consultation on changes in water abstraction licensing for previously exempt activities.

The changes will come into force on the 1st January 2018. The aim of the changes are to:

• ensure a fairer system for all abstractors – both licensed and those to be licensed’
• enable the regulator to manage water resources more effectively against a situation of increasing pressure’ and
• implement further aspects of the Water Framework Directive.

Industry sectors impacted by the new changes include quarry dewatering, and abstraction for irrigation as well as for internal drainage boards (IDBs), although IDBs have retained some exemptions.

A two-year transition window will commence once the regulations come into force. Current exempt abstractors have two years to apply for licences. The Environment Agency (EA) or Natural Resources Wales (NRW) Regulator will determine all applications within three years from the end of the two year application period. There is no additional guidance on the level of information required but it is common to have to undertake surveys and assessment over a whole water year cycle. Therefore, it is wise to start the application process early in a planned manner, especially as some surveys, such as for macro-invertebrates, are seasonal.