Photo by Marijn Flapper on Unsplash

The latest report from the Ofwat Innovation Fund identifies the challenges and opportunities for nature-based solutions in the water sector.

The From source to sea: harnessing nature for whole catchment innovation report is the fourth in the Ofwat Innovation Fund’s learning report series.

The new report focuses on eight projects which benefited from £18M of the total £600M Ofwat Innovation Fund. All projects supported by the £600M fund involve partnership with one of six of the UK’s privatised water utility companies.

The eight projects highlighted in the report were led by six water companies, and involved collaboration with 77 partners, including the Rivers Trust, the Zoological Society of London (ZSL), CIWEM (the Chartered Institution of Water and Environmental Management), HR Wallingford, as well as technology companies, universities and local governments.

The projects include citizen science initiatives, projects to promote the integration of sustainable drainage systems (SuDs) into urban environments and identifying how to scale NBS to the landscape level. 

Ofwat says these solutions are informing the sector’s “source-to-sea” approach, demonstrating the interconnectivity of the UK’s water systems, from upstream catchment management to water reuse and flood mitigation.