Other stories from last week

(by Karma Loveday)

River Action has launched a judicial review challenging the green light Natural Resources Wales (NRW) gave in November for three intensive poultry units in Powys to expand, in light of deterioration in the quality of the Wye and Severn catchments. The campaign group argued NRW has taken an “unlawfully narrow view of its powers” in considering that the environmental impacts of manure once it leaves the farm boundary fall outside of permitting rules. 

Ofwat has published a research report into customers’ billing journeys. Among the areas identified as in need of improvement were debt repayment or non-payment, perceived mistakes in billing, and issues related to metering. The report also flagged up: issues that could be avoided (e.g. by companies delivering things they have already committed to); areas where proactivity would prevent billing problems occurring in the first place (such as leak identification); supporting vulnerable customers; updating and communicating with customers who have had a problem; resolving issues in a timely way; and explaining the complaints process. 

United Utilities has launched a long-term Power Purchase Agreement tender for renewable energy. It currently generates around 20% of its total energy usage from its own sites, and is seeking to both boost that and align with existing or upcoming renewable generation assets close to its operational sites to develop private‑wire Power Purchase Agreements. In total, United Utilities aims to obtain at least 50,000MWh of clean electricity. 

Separately, it has partnered with Mott MacDonald to embed the Moata Carbon Portal into its £13bn AMP8 capital delivery programme. The digital tool will enable United Utilities and its Tier 1 and 2 delivery partners to accurately measure the carbon impact of both the construction and whole life operations of its infrastructure projects.

Given the complex landscape of legislative changes, policy shifts, phased rollouts, and compliance updates in the environmental arena in 2026, Thomson Environmental Consultants has created the 2026 Environmental Compliance Checklist — a quick reference guide for green professionals on what needs to be done, when, and how to comply. The checklist covers England, Scotland and Wales, and topics including water, biodiversity and environmental delivery. View the checklist here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Mgkt45bgg3A6joB6DnMg77f9VZD2yl5s/view