Open-source water resource model - Ocean and Coastal Futures

Millions of pounds will be saved by the water industry in England and Wales thanks to a new water resources model, Pywr-WREW, developed by a researcher at the Environmental Change Institute, ECI.

Dr Anna Murgatroyd, Research Associate, has been awarded £50,000 funding to rebuild the national Water Resources model for England and Wales using open-source software.

The current model, based on the MaRIUS project (Managing the Risks, Impacts and Uncertainties of drought and water scarcity) and National System Simulation Modelling (NSSM) project, which was co-developed by researchers at the ECI, uses licensed software which means that water regulators OFWAT and the Environment Agency are having to pay to use the model.

But this new model, Pywr-WREW, is built using software which is free to access by stakeholders including the Environment Agency, OFWAT and Water Companies.