bathing waters an industry perspective …...2015/11/11  · the future of catchment partnerships...

UK Bathing Waters Conference 2015

10 - 11 November 2015

Surgeons Hall, Royal College of Surgeons, Edinburgh

BATHING WATERS –

AN INDUSTRY PERSPECTIVE

‘THE FUTURE OF BATHING WATER COMPLIANCE –

HOW MIGHT CATCHMENT BASED SOLUTIONS BE DELIVERED?’

Dr Stephen Bird Chair of the Water UK Marine Network

UK Bathing Waters Conference 2015 Dr Stephen Bird

10 - 11 November 2015 Chair Water UK Marine Network

Surgeons Hall, Royal College of Surgeons, Edinburgh sbird@southwestwater.co.uk

Overview

The industries regulatory framework

What has driven the industries investment?

The traditional solutions

Benefits to UK bathing water quality

A few key messages

Key challenges to compliance and the perception of quality

CSOs are not the only risk

Diffuse Urban Control – Torbay

Upstream & Downstream Thinking

Community Engagement

Improving public understanding

The future of catchment partnerships

1. Water quality

directives

2. UK regulations

and law

4.Design and AMP Plan 4.Costs

3. UK policy targets and National Environment Programme (NEP)

4. Affordability & Benefits

6. Directive compliance reporting

5. Agreed NEP and UK

compliance reporting

Five Year Cycles

The industries regulatory framework

‘Water Future’ Customer

Panels

UK Bathing Waters Conference 2015 Dr Stephen Bird

10 - 11 November 2015 Chair Water UK Marine Network

Surgeons Hall, Royal College of Surgeons, Edinburgh sbird@southwestwater.co.uk

Water and Sewerage Companies

Traditionally focussed on engineering solutions ‘Rigid’ investment cycles potentially limiting solutions

What has driven the industries investment?

Key marine regulatory ‘drivers’:

Urban Waste Treatment (2004)

Bathing Waters (1992 & 2013)

Shellfish Waters (1997 & 2006)

‘Habitats and Species’ (2010)

What will be the new ‘drivers’ in the 21st Century?

Protecting public health and well being

Supporting growth aspirations (tourism)

Supporting solutions to persistently “poor” bathing waters

UK Bathing Waters Conference 2015 Dr Stephen Bird

10 - 11 November 2015 Chair Water UK Marine Network

Surgeons Hall, Royal College of Surgeons, Edinburgh sbird@southwestwater.co.uk

The traditional solutions

UK Bathing Waters Conference 2015 Dr Stephen Bird

10 - 11 November 2015 Chair Water UK Marine Network

Surgeons Hall, Royal College of Surgeons, Edinburgh sbird@southwestwater.co.uk

c. £40 billion spent across UK since

1990 improving waste water discharges

Will ‘hard’ engineering continue to

deliver WQ benefits?

UK Bathing Waters Conference 2015 Dr Stephen Bird

10 - 11 November 2015 Chair Water UK Marine Network

Surgeons Hall, Royal College of Surgeons, Edinburgh sbird@southwestwater.co.uk

Benefits to UK bathing water quality

“Bathing water quality has improved steadily since 1988,

largely as a result of improvements to the sewerage

system by water companies”.

(Defra 6th November 2014)

Source: UK EEA Report 2014

Are we reaching a

benefits plateau?

UK Bathing Waters Conference 2015 Dr Stephen Bird

10 - 11 November 2015 Chair Water UK Marine Network

Surgeons Hall, Royal College of Surgeons, Edinburgh sbird@southwestwater.co.uk

A few key messages Statement of Obligations; Defra (2012) – for Price Review 2015-20

Reinforced key messages and approaches from:

Natural Environment White Paper; ‘The Natural Choice’ (2011) and

Water White Paper; ‘Water for Life’ (2011)

• water industry services are essential to health, wellbeing and economy

• ‘ecosystems approach’ advocated

• management of the water environment across a whole catchment

• increasing pressure from population growth and a changing climate means

there is a need to see changes in the way water is managed

• Water companies will need to be more innovative, more efficient and more

attentive to what their customers want

UK Bathing Waters Conference 2015 Dr Stephen Bird

10 - 11 November 2015 Chair Water UK Marine Network

Surgeons Hall, Royal College of Surgeons, Edinburgh sbird@southwestwater.co.uk

We do have a much better understanding of the sources

But how do we deliver improvements in the future?

Key challenges to compliance and

the perception of quality

R² = 0.9775

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

160

180

200

0 100 200 300 400 500

EA PRF & SWWL BeachLive Correlation (All Bathing Waters) 2014

Catchment Risks

vs

CSO Risks

EA PRF Cumulative Total (SWWL Region)

Beach

Liv

e N

oti

ficati

on

s C

um

ula

tiv

e T

ota

l (A

ll B

ath

ing

Wate

rs)

Good Correlation between EA

PFR & BeachLive Notifications

Not all BWs are EA PRF

and/or BeachLive sites

Ratio BeachLIve EAPRF

No. of Sites 1 1.5

No. of Notifications 1 2.7

UK Bathing Waters Conference 2015 Dr Stephen Bird

10 - 11 November 2015 Chair Water UK Marine Network

Surgeons Hall, Royal College of Surgeons, Edinburgh sbird@southwestwater.co.uk

CSOs are not the only risk

Diffuse Urban Control - Torbay

SWWL and Torbay funded

Partnership approach

Torbay streams to BWs

144 illegal connections to SW

investigated and removed

UK Bathing Waters Conference 2015 Dr Stephen Bird

10 - 11 November 2015 Chair Water UK Marine Network

Surgeons Hall, Royal College of Surgeons, Edinburgh sbird@southwestwater.co.uk

Upstream thinking – why?

UK Bathing Waters Conference 2015 Dr Stephen Bird

10 - 11 November 2015 Chair Water UK Marine Network

Surgeons Hall, Royal College of Surgeons, Edinburgh sbird@southwestwater.co.uk

Diffuse Agriculture Human

Avian Diffuse Urban

Microbial Source Tracking

Conventional bacti analysis Source apportionment

UK Bathing Waters Conference 2015 Dr Stephen Bird

10 - 11 November 2015 Chair Water UK Marine Network

Surgeons Hall, Royal College of Surgeons, Edinburgh sbird@southwestwater.co.uk

Upstream thinking - solutions

Source: Cornwall Wildlife Trust

Rural SUDS for surface

water management

EA / CWT matched funded

Downstream thinking – why?

UK Bathing Waters Conference 2015 Dr Stephen Bird

10 - 11 November 2015 Chair Water UK Marine Network

Surgeons Hall, Royal College of Surgeons, Edinburgh sbird@southwestwater.co.uk

Downstream thinking - solutions

Application of existing and innovative

technology

New ways of delivery working

Greater information and communication

Optimum use of network capacity

Community engagement at catchment level

(leading to understanding/ownership)

Rectification of historic planning issues

UK Bathing Waters Conference 2015 Dr Stephen Bird

10 - 11 November 2015 Chair Water UK Marine Network

Surgeons Hall, Royal College of Surgeons, Edinburgh sbird@southwestwater.co.uk

Souce: Susdrain

UK Bathing Waters Conference 2015 Dr Stephen Bird

10 - 11 November 2015 Chair Water UK Marine Network

Surgeons Hall, Royal College of Surgeons, Edinburgh sbird@southwestwater.co.uk

Community Engagement

Why Engage?

Develop mutual understanding

Remove barriers to communication

Promote proactive strategic engagement

Define objectives / risks to development and

growth

Collective messaging credibility

UK Bathing Waters Conference 2015 Dr Stephen Bird

10 - 11 November 2015 Chair Water UK Marine Network

Surgeons Hall, Royal College of Surgeons, Edinburgh sbird@southwestwater.co.uk

Improving public understanding

What ‘drives’ the public’s understanding of BWQ?

Who should be delivering the key messages?

SAS Campaign Director, Andy Cummins

“The community are sending a clear message to South West Water, this

level of repeat polluting is unacceptable. There are easy and obvious

solutions and it’s now time for South West Water to listen to SAS and the

community and stop treating the environment as a dumping ground.”

Key ‘Players’

UK Bathing Waters Conference 2015 Dr Stephen Bird

10 - 11 November 2015 Chair Water UK Marine Network

Surgeons Hall, Royal College of Surgeons, Edinburgh sbird@southwestwater.co.uk

Improving public understanding

“If you can’t explain it simply, you don’t understand it well

enough” Albert Einstein

UK Bathing Waters Conference 2015 Dr Stephen Bird

10 - 11 November 2015 Chair Water UK Marine Network

Surgeons Hall, Royal College of Surgeons, Edinburgh sbird@southwestwater.co.uk

The future of catchment partnerships

Catchment Management

Function

Upstream thinking

Diffuse Urban

Sewerage Infrastructure

Investment

Sustainable Economic

Development & Growth

Downstream thinking

Public Relations

Research / Monitoring

How do we best manage the interface between function

and delivery?

Catchment Management

Delivery

Water & sewerage Co.s

Environmental regulators

Highways agencies

Local / Unitary Authorities

Private Beach Managers

NGOs

Beach management fora

UK Bathing Waters Conference 2015 Dr Stephen Bird

10 - 11 November 2015 Chair Water UK Marine Network

Surgeons Hall, Royal College of Surgeons, Edinburgh sbird@southwestwater.co.uk

The future of catchment partnerships Keys to successful delivery:

Common understanding (of deliverables, benefits,

regulatory timescales, responsibilities)

Voluntary engagement (supported by a regulatory framework)

Community engagement and ownership for sustainable

delivery

Continuity of funding for ecosystem service changes

Structured programme of mutually supportive interventions

Flexible delivery mechanisms (outcome, not deliverer focused)

The future of catchment partnerships

So, what is the likely role of the Water Industry?

Catchment Management Function Yes / No

Statutory undertaker – protecting public health and well being Yes

Technical / advisory Yes

Supporting sustainable development / growth through tourism Yes

Investing in solutions for ‘poor’ bathing waters Yes

Funding (where this supports objectives) Yes

Collaborative Research Yes

Educator / Public Advice Yes

New technology / solutions Yes

Community engagement Yes

Capacity building / facilitation Yes

Catchment partner organisation Yes

Catchment ‘Operator’ No

UK Bathing Waters Conference 2015 Dr Stephen Bird

10 - 11 November 2015 Chair Water UK Marine Network

Surgeons Hall, Royal College of Surgeons, Edinburgh sbird@southwestwater.co.uk

Thank you for listening

Any questions?