27 Feb 2025
The Water (Special Measures) Act 2025 has received Royal Assent, boosting the powers of water sector regulators to tackle pollution. This new legislation introduces enhanced powers for regulators to hold water companies accountable for their environmental impact, with particular focus on ensuring water company executives are penalised for failures. The Water (Special Measures) Act, which […]
27 Feb 2025
For the first time in the UK, a Council has signed up to a River Rights Charter. Whilst not yet legally binding, the Charter provides a visionary framework that reflects both the essential needs of the river in order for it to be healthy, and local communities highest aspirations for it. Photo credit: Anne […]
27 Feb 2025
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a family of over 10,000 highly persistent synthetic chemicals often called ‘forever chemicals’, because they do not break down easily in the environment. Exposure to some PFAS has been linked to numerous adverse health impacts, such as the promotion of certain cancers, disruption of the immune system and reduced […]
27 Feb 2025
The River Thames dataset is the world’s longest continuous water quality record, providing an invaluable historical perspective on how human activity and policy can affect rivers, and sets a new benchmark for assessing modern water quality challenges. Photo credit: Nicole Rathmayr Over the past 40 years, concerted efforts to improve wastewater treatment and […]
20 Feb 2025
The Environment Agency has published a new Working with Natural Processes Evidence Directory, updating the first release in 2017. Informed by significant scientific research including more than 700 papers, the directory summarises the latest evidence for 17 natural flood management (NFM) measures relating to river and floodplain, woodland, run-off, and coast and estuary management. NFM protects, […]
20 Feb 2025
Ofwat has opened an enforcement case into Thames Water to investigate whether the delayed delivery of environmental improvement schemes it committed to has meant that it has breached or will be likely to breach legal obligations Ofwat is responsible for enforcing. Photo credit: Yelena Odintsova The Water Industry National Environmental Programme (WINEP) is the […]
20 Feb 2025
Thames Water is among several water companies to ask the economic regulator, Ofwat, to refer its Final Determination to the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) for a redetermination. Others include Anglian Water and Southern Water. The Board of the UK’s largest water and wastewater services company made the unanimous decision after concluding that the Final […]
20 Feb 2025
Defra has published the first suite of adaptation reports submitted by organisations in England as part of the fourth round of the adaptation reporting process under the Climate Change 2008 Act. Photo credit: George Desipris They include several water companies, and the Canal and River Trust. The reports highlight: the current and future […]
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