UK Environment Secretary Michael Gove has called on water companies to increase their investment in the environment, to improve environmental outcomes by 2025.
The Water Industry National Environment Programme (WINEP) calls for water companies to increase environmental investment, and seeks to deliver up to £5bn (~€5.7bn) for the natural environment between 2020 and 2025. New measures will encourage this investment, and the government aims to use the additional funding to tackle challenges such as the spread of invasive species and the effects of chemical pollution on the water environment.
Specifically, the measures will aim to protect and improve at least 6,000km worth of waterways, and at least 1,800 hectares of nature conservation sites, by tightening regulations and stimulating investment. Additionally, this will involve biodiversity efforts in 4276 hectares, as well as 900km of river, and improve ten shellfish conservation sites and 24 areas designated as bathing waters.
How will the measures encourage water companies to increase environmental investment?
Water companies will be expected to comply with the new WINEP regulations by 2025, which will ensure that they are able to contribute to strengthening environmental protections. Further, the Environment Agency suggested that the implementation of WINEP would offer an opportunity for water industry stakeholders to develop innovative approaches to defending the environment.
Emma Howard Boyd, chair of the Environment Agency, explained that WINEP is necessary because the efforts of many water companies are still insufficient to ensure suitable and effective protection of the natural environment. She said: “A clean water environment keeps us healthy, sustains wildlife, and is essential to the success of the economy. Water quality has improved in recent decades but water companies are still responsible for at least one serious pollution incident every week.”
Gove echoed these sentiments, suggesting that the additional investment could be transformative for the UK’s waterways: “This significant investment will help tackle some of the biggest challenges facing the natural environment. It will help to improve our waterways, increase biodiversity and combat non-native invasive species. This will support our goal to leave the environment in a better state for future generations.”
