Other stories from last week

(by Karma Loveday)

Bristol Water has become the latest water company to impose a hosepipe ban. Active since 27 August across its supply area, this is the first ban in the area for 50 years. It has been issued to protect water resources in the River Severn, following the issuance of a Drought Order by the Environment Agency. Bristol Water takes over half of its water from river sources, including the River Severn via the Gloucester and Sharpness Canal. 

The Planning Inspectorate held a hearing last week on Southern Water’s River Test Drought Order and Non-Essential Use Ban applications. Among the objectors were WildFish, which has objected on environmental grounds. The Inspector's findings will be passed to the secretary of state for a final determination.

South East Water has appointed Katy Ringsdore as chief corporate affairs officer. She joins from Pennon Group. It has also appointed Kerri Ricketts as customer services director. She joins from the rail sector. The company said the two appointments “reflect the company’s commitment to putting the voice of the customer at the centre of its decision-making as it accelerates its transformation and works to rebuild trust”.

Ofwat has announced Water Breakthrough Challenge 7 will launch on 7 September. £50m will be available for collaborations led by water companies. Ofwat said the round will see stronger focus on generating and sharing knowledge, and on rolling out successful innovations across the sector.

Mobile wastewater treatment reedbeds could be rolled out more widely by Scottish Water after a successful trial at the Moscow Wastewater Treatment Works in East Ayrshire. Eight months of data has showed the beds have met targets set at the start of the trial, and are helping to produce cleaner final effluent. The pilot aims to provide flexible, nature-based treatment options for rural sites which may face challenges in treating wastewater at certain points of the year.

The universities of Bath and Bangor have collaborated to launch Global Wastewater Day. On 31 March 2027, a single global day of wastewater sampling will take place, with the aim to “transform wastewater from an overlooked by-product into one of the world's most powerful tools for understanding public health, environmental change and emerging global risks”. The initiative aims to create a simultaneous global snapshot of health and environmental conditions through wastewater analysis, generating new insights to strengthen disease surveillance, track antimicrobial resistance, protect the environment and improve pandemic preparedness. The initiative was launched at the World Water Week conference in Stockholm.