28 Aug 2025

Image description: Tap water running into a water glass. Image by com77380 / Pixabay   Britain’s water industry is under renewed scrutiny as Ofwat investigates executive pay at six major water companies. The probe follows public outrage over pollution incidents and undisclosed offshore payments. As reported by Reuters, Ofwat has contacted Thames Water, Yorkshire Water, […]

28 Aug 2025

    Scotland is facing increasing water scarcity as prolonged dry weather continues to affect river levels, particularly in the east of the country. The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) has issued restrictions in areas where rivers have reached ‘significant scarcity’, the highest alert level. As reported by The Scotsman, SEPA has introduced curbs on […]

28 Aug 2025

Image description: Manual pumping station. Image by Markus Distelrath / Pixabay   Yorkshire in drought Yorkshire went into drought in mid-June, with hosepipe bans enforced from early July. Reservoir levels continue to drop, holding just 62.9 per cent of their capacity compared to the early August average of 80.5 per cent. The picture for rivers […]

21 Aug 2025

Image description: A black tap with running water pouring into a sink. Image by Karolina Grabowska from Pixabay   Ofwat has launched a consultation on proposals to ensure water companies involve consumers and listen to their views in key decisions that have a material impact on them. This follows Ofwat receiving new powers from government […]

21 Aug 2025

Image by Stephen Phillips / Unsplash   As part of a larger effort to reduce the UK’s water consumption, the government has drawn attention to the enormous demands on utilities caused by growing data storage – the Environment Agency has advised the UK public to delete old emails in a bid to save on water […]

21 Aug 2025

Image description: Haweswater reservoir. Image by Dave Noonan from Pixabay   United Utilities has announced a £3bn deal to refurbish the Haweswater aqueduct, which carries water from Cumbria to 2.5m customers across Greater Manchester and Lancashire. The 68-mile pipeline is almost 70 years old, and the refurbishment has been described as ‘one of the largest […]

21 Aug 2025

Image description: Two firefighters walking holding firefighting foam, a common source of PFAS. Image by Maria Moczydlak from Pixabay.   New research suggests exposure to some common PFAS or “forever chemical” compounds causes changes to gene activity, and those changes are linked to health problems including multiple cancers, neurological disorders and autoimmune disease. Researchers examined […]

21 Aug 2025

Image description: Fishermen from Qarmat Ali with the Nahr Bin Umar oilfield across the Shatt al-Arab River. They complain that due to pollution and the river’s increased salinity, they often pull in dead fish. Image by Daniela Sala / The Guardian.   The Guardian recently reported on the decline of Iraq’s Hawizeh wetlands, part of […]