The Environment Agency (EA) has published its annual report on the environmental performance of England’s nine water and sewerage companies during 2023. Natural Resources Wales (NRW) has published a similar report for Welsh companies. The EA report shows an improvement in star ratings under the Environmental Performance Assessment (EPA), but the majority of companies continue to […]
The Environment Agency has published a new guide for anyone who owns or occupies land or property next to or containing a main river in England. In ‘Your watercourse: rights and roles’, the Agency notes that, where a watercourse runs adjacent to or through your land you will be what is termed a ‘riparian landowner’. […]
An investigation by Unearthed has revealed that England’s beleaguered environmental regulator has been turning up late – or not at all – to three out of every four of the country’s worst pollution incidents. Between January 2017 and October 2023, the Environment Agency (EA) missed its own response time targets for more than 3,400 serious […]
By Guglielmo Sonnino Sorisio, PhD Candidate in Ecohydraulics, Cardiff University and Catherine Wilson, Professor in Environmental Hydraulics, Cardiff University. The European eel Anguilla anguilla, a sleek, snake-like fish with a fascinating life cycle, once teemed in rivers. But their numbers have plummeted by over 95% since the 1980s. Behind this dramatic decline is a combination of threats, including […]
The Environment Agency has successfully prosecuted Welsh Water Ltd for breaking conditions of an environmental permit at a sewage treatment works near Hereford between August 2020 and June 2021. At Worcester crown court on Friday 7 June, Welsh Water entered a guilty plea and were fined £90,000 for exceeding permitted levels of sewage effluent into […]
Having created a watchdog for the environment, the government took its teeth out and muzzled it. Can public outrage rouse the Environment Agency to action? Useful article from The Guardian, highlighting how government has gradually weakened and undermined the environmental regulator for England., including subsuming its independent website into Defra’s.
Following a recent consultation on charge proposals for water quality permits, the Environment Agency (EA) has confirmed that charges will increase significantly, especially for water companies. The proposals were covered in Water News in January. The EA has now published the outcome of the consultation, including the response summary, detailed summary of responses, list of respondents […]
Championing Coastal Coordination – 2024/2025 – online seminar The Expression of Interest (EOI) for the 2024/2025 Championing Coastal Coordination (3C’s) funding round is now open. This is the final confirmed round of funding for the 3C’s. The Environment Agency will be hosting an online Question and Answers seminar at 14.00 on Friday 7th June. The […]