The Environment Agency has launched a consultation on changes to variable monetary penalties – financial penalties that can be imposed for certain environmental offences. The changes will scrap the £250,000 cap on civil penalties and significantly broaden their scope to target a wider range of environmental offences. New enforcement powers will allow the Environment Agency to apply penalties […]
United Utilities Water Limited have been fined £800,000 after illegally abstracting 22 billion litres of water from boreholes in Lancashire following a prosecution by the Environment Agency. The Guardian reports that the company breached three-year rolling limit on abstraction licence at Fylde aquifer in 2018.
Water Reuse Europe, the industry association for the European water reuse sector, is delighted to announce its Innovation Prize 2023, to recognise professionals who are breaking ground in developing solutions to address the water supply challenges of today and tomorrow across Europe. The Prize is open to any person representing a company or institution with […]
Nature-based Solutions for Cities is a new open access book featuring the state of the art in interdisciplinary nature-based solutions research with multiple perspectives from across the globe. Nature-based solutions (NBS) are increasingly being adopted to address climate change, health, and urban sustainability, yet ensuring they are effective and inclusive remains a challenge. Addressing these […]
The Times reports that the government has privately asked water companies to explore saving money on future water supplies by assuming unrealistically low levels of climate change. Water firms are required to publish “water resources management plans” every five years for how they will ensure the water supply for the next 25 years, including new […]
A coalition of 15 leading environmental groups has written to the Government urging it not to delay or cut back on environmental spend at PR24 to improve water quality. The organisations include the Wildlife Trusts, Rivers Trust, Surfers against Sewage, RSPB England, Friends of the Earth and Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust. They were responding to […]
A legal claim has been issued against six UK water companies who are facing legal collective actions for allegedly abusing their dominant market position by underreporting the number of times they cause pollution incidents and overcharging customers as a result. The case is covered in the Guardian which says the claim on behalf of 20 […]
Defra has issued a press release to let the world know that Environment Secretary Thérèse Coffey and Water Minister Rebecca Pow met stakeholders “to discuss actions to improve the River Deben” in Suffolk. Apparently part of the follow-up to the government’s Plan for Water, there was no significant progress reported, no additional funding and no action […]