Water Security

The first major report on water resources in England, published by the Environment Agency states that climate change and demand from a growing population are the biggest pressures on the availability of water. Without action to increase supply, reduce demand and cut down on wastage, many areas in England could see significant supply deficits by 2050 – particularly in the south east.

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Business investment in sustainable landscapes can help to develop collaborative solutions to address issues like water scarcity, deforestation or ecosystem services, according to a new report released at the Forest and Landscape Investment Forum.

The not-for-profit group, Waterwise has asserted that there is a need to “generate a water-saving culture” and promote water efficiency throughout the UK in order to combat the serious challenges that await, including the challenges of reduced supply and increased demand.

In a wide-ranging report, the organisation said this could be achieved through a large-scale combined communication campaign, which would need the involvement of water companies, government and other key stakeholders.

A major water research initiative between UK and India researchers launches today.

The new virtual India-UK Water Centre, is managed by the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (CEH) and the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM) and aims to stimulate research collaboration to address water availability and sustainable water management issues in both countries.

Environment Secretary Andrea Leadsom announced on 3^rd September plans to ban the sale and manufacture of cosmetics and personal care products containing tiny pieces of plastic, commonly known as ‘microbeads’.

Each year billions of tiny beads end up in our seas from a range of products such as face scrubs, toothpastes and shower gels. These beads build up in the marine environment and can be swallowed by sea life, including fish and crustaceans.

The specific aim of the Innovation Projects Open Call is to increase and accelerate the uptake and impact of NERC funded research outputs by supporting translational and knowledge exchange activity which delivers direct tangible and demonstrable benefits to end users, particularly businesses.

Funds will be used to support projects which focus upon generating user applicable outputs from past and/or current NERC supported research and which translates them into outcomes that achieve impact.

NERC have added two further directed funding opportunities:

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.

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.

This project assessed the performance of different types of public water supply systems in England and Wales in a range of droughts, including those that are more severe than the worst droughts in the historical record.

This information was used to identify the relative sensitivity of different supply systems under stress. The results of these ‘stress tests’ will help to improve our understanding of water supply system sensitivity to drought.

Despite being regarded as a country of fairly inclement weather, the UK has less water available per person than most European nations. Using water more efficiently will help ensure that bills remain affordable and water supplies are reliable now and in the future.

Reducing pressure on water resources is necessary, not only by developing new resources, but also in tackling the inefficient use of water. Being water efficient means taking simple steps to reduce water use and employing water-saving technologies which will also save both energy and money.