12 Jun 2025

Image description: sewage outfalls emptying into the ocean. Image by Tom Fisk.   Unfair bonuses banned The government has confirmed “unfair bonuses” have been banned for six water companies with immediate effect, following new measures from the Water (Special Measures) Act coming into force. The government said that in the past 10 years, executives at […]

05 Jun 2025

Image Description: Water treatment facility from a birds-eye view. Image by Tom Fisk.   The Independent Water Commission has released its interim report, ahead of its final findings due in the Summer. Sir Jon Cunliffe, Chair of the Commission, has set out five areas where he believes wide-ranging and fundamental change is needed to reset […]

05 Jun 2025

Image: A man paddleboarding. Image by Kampus Production / Pexels.   In March, the government announced reforms which it says will modernise “outdated” regulations around bathing water quality, and will “keep pace with Britain’s love of swimming”. The system for monitoring the more than 550 designated, outdoor, swimming sites in England and Wales will be […]

29 May 2025

 Photo description: Tower Bridge straddling the Thames. Image by Albrecht Fietz / Pixabay   Thames Water has been fined a total of £122.7m for breaching rules over sewage spills and shareholder payouts, as Ofwat finalised both the penalty and enforcement order which have been imposed on the company. A £104.5m penalty has been issued for […]

22 May 2025

Image description: A winding river through a dark landscape, with the sun in the centre of the sky. Image by Pixabay.   A new study finds nearly a third of all antibiotics that people consume, equivalent to 8,500 tonnes, end up in the world’s rivers every year. Previous studies estimating environmental antibiotic pollution at global […]

22 May 2025

Image description: A protest march with people holding placards. A man’s t-shirt reads “don’t poison our water”. Image by the Climate Reality Project.   The government says it has overseen a large increase in criminal investigations into water companies for alleged breaches of environmental law. The Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra), in […]

20 May 2025

Image: St Mawes by Philip Auld    Conservationists have expressed deep concern over the deteriorating state of ancient maerl beds off the coast of Cornwall, England. from recent dives near St Mawe, which were organised as part of the UK Maerl Forum 2025, revealed that these fragile ecosystems are now covered in dense algae – […]

15 May 2025

Image description: The River Thames and parliament buildings. Image by SevenStorm JUHASZIMRUS / Pexels.   Thames Water faces MP select committee Thames Water’s Chris Weston (CEO), Sir Adrian Montague (Chair), and Steve Buck (CFO) were questioned by MPs at a select committee hearing in parliament, amid public outrage over the costs and operation of water […]