WSKEP news

With river flows having mostly returned to normal following a very wet start to the year, the outlook for May is for normal flows in eastern parts of the UK, with normal to below normal flows over northern and western UK. This pattern is likely to persist over the next three months. Groundwater levels are likely to be within the normal range for the next three months, with the exception of the northern Permo-Triassic sandstone aquifer, which will remain notably high throughout May. Rainfall projections show a slight increase in the probability of above-average rainfall for May, though May has begun with very dry weather in eastern parts of the UK. For May-June-July there are equal chances of above- and below-average rainfall.

The full Outlook can be found here.

Desalination takes salt and other contaminants out of water. Now scientists are looking to take the prohibitive costs out of desalination.

“Researchers have come up with a solar-powered technique that could make small-scale desalination systems affordable, even for individual households. The approach is a new take on an old technology known as a solar still. These stills — large containers covered by clear plastic tarps or glass enclosures — direct sunlight onto a basin of salty water,” Science journal reported.

More information can be found here.

New Environment Agency guidance explains how to assess the risk of an activity and decide whether it supports the objectives of your local River Basin Management Plan (RBMP) or meets sustainability criteria. 

The Water Framework Directive is a European directive that imposes legal requirements to protect and improve the water environment (including rivers, coasts, estuaries, lakes, ground waters and canals). Physical works can modify the size and shape of a watercourse, reduce or increase the flow of water, introduce artificial materials or remove sediment and/or vegetation.

The guidance can be viewed here.

"Water is fundamental to our lives. Not only do we rely on water to sustain our metabolism and for sanitation, but it is essential for almost all of our food production; is a carrier for our waste; maintains a habitat for flora and fauna; supports recreation and enhances the aesthetic value of our landscape. However, to much or too little, at the wrong palace or the wrong time can cause major disruptions to society. In order to support society, water has to be managed in a way that satisfies its multiple users and uses within the constraints of politics and economics."

The 2016 BHS International Symposium will focus on how the scientific understanding of hydrology is applied to managing water in order to satisfy the competing needs of society, and how “hydrologists make the water go round”.

More information about the event can be found here.

A two-day conference to mark the launch of WIRC@Bath (Water Innovation & Research Centre). It features internationally renowned speakers and will showcase our research capabilities. In addition to the technical sessions there will be plenty of time to network and discuss research around the poster sessions, as well as during the Conference Dinner in the Pump Room Restaurant at the Roman Baths.

NERC invites applications to attend a jointly organised workshop with the Environment Agency (EA) and Department for Food, Environment & Rural Affairs (Defra) on 9 June 2016 on using natural processes to minimise flood risk.

NERC, the EA and Defra are interested in identifying the key environmental research priorities related to using natural processes to reduce flood risk, with a view to potentially developing a collaborative research programme in this area. To support this process a scoping workshop will be held on 9 June 2016.

Registration closing date: 6 May 2016

More information about the workshop can be found on the NERC website.

The outlook for the coming months appears rather complex but reflects the differing conditions at the start of the month and the varying response times of river catchments and aquifer units. In general river flows are likely to be above normal in the south-east of the UK and normal in the north and west. The exception to this is for chalk-fed rivers in the south-east which are also most likely to be in the normal range. Groundwater levels are likely to remain normal across most of the UK with two exceptions; groundwater levels in the northern Permo-Triassic sandstones are likely to remain at notably high levels for some months, and levels in parts of the southern Chalk are likely to be above normal. Whereas this variation in groundwater levels is likely to persist, perhaps until early autumn, river flows are more responsive to rainfall and the longer term outlook is less settled.

You can read the Outlook here.

The Institute for Fisheries Managment (IFM) have released a call for papers for the IFM Annual Conference entitled Fisheries Working Together – From Headwater to Saltwater.
 
The conference will be held at the The Assembly House in Norwich from October 4th – 6th 2016.  The conference aims to provide a forum for discussion and networking for people working in all aspects of fisheries management in both the freshwater and marine environments.  It is a chance to showcase investigations and great partnership projects throughout the aquatic environment.

More information about the event and how to participate can be found on the IFM website.

The Geological Society's Hydrogeological Group and IAH are pleased to announce a two-day conference on 13-14 September 2016 to celebrate the International Association of Hydrogeologists 60th anniversary and the Geological Society's Year of Water, hosted by the University of Birmingham. The conference will incorporate the Ineson Lecture and re-launch of Groundwater our Hidden Asset, supported by the Groundwater Forum. 

The deadline for abstract submission is 19th April 2016. More information about this event can be found here.

"All UK hydroelectric projects with planning permission are in Scotland, according to research by Scottish Renewables."

The group said a total of 27 projects with a combined capacity of 58.5MW have planning permission, with 14 schemes totalling 26.8MW under construction in the UK – all in Scotland.

The study comes after news earlier this month that two community-scale hydropower plants in the Scottish Highlands have secured nearly £5 million investment from the Green Investment Bank.

Read the full story here.

The UK Groundwater Modellers’ Forum (GWMF) is organising a meeting which combines the 14th GWMF workshop and the National Ground Water Research and Educational Foundation (NGWREF)’s Darcy lecture.

A large number of regional and local scale groundwater models exist in the UK and increasingly, these are being adapted for application beyond the purpose, scale or time frame for which they were originally intended.

A number of talks will consider recent examples of repurposed models being used by the wider UK community. 

More information can be found here.

NERC, the Medical Research Council (MRC) and the Scottish Government Chief Scientist Office (CSO) are investing up to £600,000 in projects to identify and fill knowledge gaps around the potential of environmental data to improve health outcomes in the UK. This call will focus specifically on using environmental data on air pollution and/or environmental hazards alongside health and biomedical data.

A brokerage event in Edinburgh to identify projects for this call is planned for 10 May 2016. Prospective participants will be invited to apply to attend this event. Participants will then be invited to submit full proposals for studies following the event.

Brokerage event attendees will be invited to submit full proposals which must be submitted via Je-S by 12 July 2016.

More information can be found here.

For many years one of the major unresolved Water Framework Directive issues relating to physical obstructions in UK rivers looks set to be resolved.

This month the Government is setting out proposed new legislation to remove obstructions or build fish passes to provide a route around or through these hurdles. These passes already exist on some rivers across the country, as do protective screens to stop fish getting trapped in water intakes. New legislation to facilitate fish passage could help recover stocks of species like salmon, which are born in our rivers and swim to the Atlantic to mature for up to three years before returning to the same river to spawn.

World Water Day is observed worldwide each year on March 22nd. It is an opportunity to focus attention on a natural resource that all our lives and livelihoods depend on. It is a day on which to be inspired and take action to make a difference for those who can’t take water for granted.

In 2016, World Water Day highlights how water and jobs interact to transform people’s lives.
Almost half of the world's 1.5 billion workers are working in water related sectors and nearly all jobs depend on water and those that ensure its safe delivery. Yet millions of water workers are not recognized or protected by basic labour rights. Water and sanitation are essential workers’ lives and health. 

Find out more information on the UN Water website.

Defra has produced two reports in order to set out a roadmap working towards long-term resilience in the water sector.

The first report sets out how the policy framework will be enhanced during this Parliament to secure the long-term resilience of the water sector in dealing with pressures like climate change and a growing population.

The second report sets out plans to support the long-term resilience of the water sector in dealing with pressures like climate change and a growing population. This is supported by the Environment Agency’s advice which covers the current and future resilience of the public water supply, power generation and agricultural sectors.

More information about the reports can be found here.

February was a month of contrasting conditions, beginning wet and mild and ending cold and dry. The UK registered notably above average rainfall and most regions were wetter than average, some substantially so. The unsettled conditions early in the month (including the named storms ‘Henry’ and ‘Imogen’) contributed to the second wettest winter for the UK (in a series from 1910) and the second warmest winter in the Central England Temperature series (from 1659).

Soils remained saturated, and average river flows were above normal in most of northern and western Britain and in the normal range elsewhere. Average river flows for the winter were the highest on record for a large number of northern and western catchments, as were the outflows from Great Britain (in a series from 1961). Groundwater levels generally remained in the normal range or above, notably so in parts of northern England and along the south coast.

The majority of reservoirs remained close to capacity and overall stocks for England & Wales were above average. The dry weather over the latter part of the month has moderated the risk of surface water and groundwater flooding, although with soils saturated and river flows and groundwater levels generally in the normal range or above, many regions of the UK remain sensitive to additional rainfall.

You can read the full Hydrological Summary here.

The outlook for March is for the continuation of above normal river flows and groundwater levels across large parts of western Britain in response to wet weather in February and throughout the winter.  Further south and east, groundwater levels are expected to remain above normal in central southern England; otherwise river flows and groundwater levels are likely to be within the normal range.  Rainfall projections suggest that there is a slightly higher chance that spring will be wet than dry (this signal is stronger still for March).  Despite this, the three-month outlook suggests that normal to below normal river flows are likely for most regions of the UK (albeit there is some uncertainty for parts of western Britain) and there is an increased likelihood of below normal groundwater levels in parts of eastern England.

You can read the full Outlook here.

Water Saving Week is a national campaign to promote simple water saving tips for the home, garden, schools, workplace and communities.

Waterwise and WaterSafe are leading the week, which runs from 21 - 25 March 2016.

The campaign aims to raise awareness of the need for everyone to use water wisely - whatever the weather and wherever the location - to protect this precious and finite resource for generations to come.

The campaign will see five themes across the week, all with daily challenges and water saving tips. These include "water in school", "water in your workplace" and "water in your home".

More information is available on the Waterwise website.

NERC is inviting proposals to contribute to addressing the goals of the Valuing Nature programme through a broader understanding of the tipping points of ecosystem services.

This NERC supported call is for UK focused research proposals to further understand:

• the links between ecosystem stocks, ecosystem service flows and benefits that are delivered as a result, to enable identification of critical levels of ecosystem stocks that avoid abrupt and damaging change in the delivery of benefits (tipping points); and
• how the values (including those broader than economics) of ecosystem services and the benefits they deliver change as tipping points are reached and exceeded.

More infomation can be found on the NERC Website.

The UK Lakes Portal is a new online gateway to discover the lakes of the United Kingdom, linking data from many institutions into one national hub.

With more than 40,000 lakes represented, a third of those with detailed information on their catchments, the scale of this new portal hosted by the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology is unprecedented for freshwater research in the UK.

The portal includes physical, environmental, and water chemistry data compiled from an extensive set of sources over many years. In addition, integration with the National Biodiversity Network displays biology data, while anyone can observe and record species observations at any lake in the UK, using iRecord to contribute new information.

More information can be found here.