Water Resources East lays out plans for meeting its future demand

Pan water-stakeholder collaboration, Water Resources East (WRE), has outlined plans to drop the long-standing "deterministic forecasts" deployed by water companies and regulators in its initial statement setting out its future water resource needs.

In its Initial Statement of Resource – the first stage in developing its regional plan in 2023 – WRE said: the established "deterministic forecasts of the balance between supply and demand and least cost optimisation" ceased to workfor its region. "While this approach performs well for single sector planning where the supply demand investment drivers are well understood, and for regions where the predominant use of water is for public water supply, they are less suitable for multisector planning or for planning where there is significant uncertainty about investment drivers and the related risks over the long term."

The group highlighted in its strategic context for the statement, the need for growth in its region following the UK's departure from the European Union. along with the climate change considerations in its strategy for future planning. said the "delivering on the clean growth agenda and 'levelling-up' of disadvantaged communities and areas."

WRE, like other regions of England, is developing a regional integrated Water Resources Management Plan. Its plan covers catchment areas across the East of England and part of the East Midlands. The plan will be informed largely by the National Framework and its water company members’ 2019 Water Resource Management Plans.

WRE's principal funding members are

Anglian Water

Northumbrian Water (Essex & Suffolk Water)

South Staffs Water (Cambridge Water)

Severn Trent

Affinity Water

The National Farmers Union

The Countryside & Business Association

RWE Generation UK

The Association of Drainage Authorities

Lincolnshire County Council

Norfolk & Suffolk County Council

The Broads Authority

The Catchment Based Approach (led by the Rivers Trust)