02 Apr 2019

Following Michael Gove’s recent appearance before the Environment Food and Rural Affairs Committee, it seems Defra is to assess its arms-length agencies after Brexit in a move that could see the Environment Agency merged with Natural England. Environment secretary Michael Gove said that Defra’s director general for strategy delivery Shaun Gallagher would lead the review. […]

02 Apr 2019

Ofwat has announced funding for a water Regulators’ Alliance for Progressing Infrastructure Development (RAPID). “This team will ensure a smooth regulatory path for strategic water transfers and joint infrastructure projects. RAPID will bring together staff from Ofwat, the Environment Agency, and Drinking Water Inspectorate into a new team. It will follow a range of projects […]

23 Oct 2018

The Environment Agency’s head honcho has warned that the UK’s biggest flood risk, surface water, is growing. Reported in Water Briefing, Sir James Bevan told delegates at the CIWEM Surface Water Management Conference that surface water flooding threatens more people and properties than any other form of flood risk. Over 3 million properties in England […]

23 Oct 2018

The Environment Agency has published 2017 data on regulated businesses in England, covering operational risk appraisal compliance ratings, pollution inventory, pollution incidents, enforcement and waste crime. It shows there were more than 400 pollution incidents, although only a minority of these were more serious category 1 or 2 incidents. Click here to see the data.

29 May 2018

New ‘State of the Environment’ reports from the Environment Agency have been published, covering: water resources – how much clean water we have available water quality – including rivers, estuaries, coasts and groundwater The reports include status and trends, as well as current and future pressures. According to the water resources report, rivers and wildlife […]

12 Dec 2017

The EA has opened a new consultation on significant increases and other changes to their charging schemes for the April 2018-2023 period, which will set rates for the cost of: Permits Subsistence charges for regulation Advice during application and advice. This is a move towards full cost recovery for the EA’s work. it could impact […]

06 Dec 2017

Giving evidence last week to a Parliamentary Inquiry, Environment Agency chief James Bevan admitted that England will miss its already deferred water quality targets out to 2027. The Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee took evidence on Wednesday 21 November on the work of the Environment Agency. The EA is the main public body for […]

06 Dec 2017

Defra, the Environment Agency, Natural England and the Rural Payments Agency are developing a scheme under the Rural Development Programme for England (RDPE) called the Water Environment Grant (WEG) to fund improvements to the water environment. The proposed scheme is being designed to support delivery of projects that are currently funded through the Water Environment […]