THE MAGAZINE FOR THE DRAINAGE, WATER & WASTEWATER INDUSTRIES


MAIN FEATURE


The water sector in England and Wales is going through a great period of


unprecedented change and reform, with some £104 billion investment planned for AMP8 – the water company asset management plan period 2025-2030.


investment, but the more we learn about the water environment, the more we know we need to do. The starting point is that better understanding.”


Wakeham reiterated the importance of collaboration between stakeholders, including regulators, water companies and communities, pointing to effective cross- stakeholder planning as crucial in ensuring clean and plentiful water for future generations. She also stressed the potential for data and digital technology in


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preventing pollution incidents.


“What I would really like to see water utilities do is obey the law,” she said bluntly. “A lot of the effort the EA is making is using the data that we get from the industry, the data that we collect ourselves, information from the public, and from other places like the Met Office to drive our regulatory efforts.


“The industry hasn't done what it said it would do in terms of protecting the


environment and so the EA now needs to focus on regulation. If we get approval to increase our water quality fines, post consultation, that could bring the EA more than a hundred million pounds a year.


“We'll use that to increase our scrutiny of water and sewage companies. In subsequent years, that will be more than 10,000 inspections, boots on the ground and data analysts, [as well as] building data and intelligence systems to know where to inspect.”


April 2025 | 5


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