Thread by @BDavisBriz

Looking forward to what should be an interesting discussion on what lessons we can learn from this summer's extreme weather for the future management of our water resources #APPGWater

Baroness McIntosh opens the session stressing that water management is a "long standing" political issue. Highlights the negative impact of the right to connect of newbuilds & the need to invest in new, sustainable infrastructure #APPGWater

McIntosh says there is a role for building regulations and local government to play in this, & welcomes the arrival of the Levelling Up Bill to the House of Lords #APPGWater

First speaker, @EnvAgency's Helen Wakeman opens her presentation by pushing back at suggestions that water quality is "at the worst ever", noting significant improvements since she began her career in the 1990s #APPGWater

Wakeman stresses that water management is a "significant challenge" with multiple pressures - including agriculture, road runoff, microplastics, population growth & wider impact of climate changes #APPGWater

Wakeman calls for a holistic approach to addressing these challenges. But notes there has been improvements, particularly on water companies' environmental performance, which can be seen on increased biodiversity in our rivers #APPGWater

Citing Cardiff Uni research, Wakeman notes that the biggest improvement has been in urban areas, suggesting this shows benefits in investment in urban infrastructure #APPGWater

Wakeman also notes that road runnoff is a "significant challenge" for water quality & notes Environment Agency is working with DfT on Road Investment Plans to help address this #APPGWater

On the water sector, Wakeman acknowledges that WRMPs are "unsexy", but says they will be vital for putting forward a plan to help manage our water resources more holistically, working with other sectors to address common challenges #APPGWater

Turning to SuDS, Wakeman agrees that Schedule 3 will have a significant impact on water quality. Notes that the past 10 years has created a proof of concept that did not exist before, and that SuDS are both effective & popular. Calls for removal of right to connect #APPGWater

Wakeman concludes saying that we need to "cut through the noise" of recent media reportage on sewage and have a frank discussion on where we want to focus our resources & investment to make the greatest improvements #APPGWater

Next, @wessexwater's Matt Wheeldon says that issues on both #Drought & #StormOverflows both stem from bad rainwater management. Argues we need to treat rainwater as a resource, which UK is currently an outlier in #APPGWater

For example, Wheeldon argues that rainwater could be used for flushing toilets, or watering gardens, as opposed to the current situation to where we use drinking water for both #APPGWater

Wheeldon also argues the current approach of "getting rainwater off properties and into pipes" removes individual responsibility. Argues that building regs should be amended to legislate for better rainwater management on site #APPGWater

Wheeldon proposes three solutions [1] attenuation (the high-carbon status quo) [2] treatment or his preferred option [3] separation #APPGWater

Wheeldon argues customers would benefit from reduced bills due to lack of surface drainage charges and the environment would benefit from less-carbon intensive extraction practises #APPGWater

Turning to barriers, Wheeldon argues the greatest barrier is risk & uncertainty. Calls for regulation to change to make SuDS a default, giving consumers & businesses greater certainty & choice in managing rainwater #APPGWater

Wheeldon also argues that water management is "not just a Defra problem", but there needs to be a joined-up approach with DfT MLUCH and other organisations #APPGWater

Next speaker @AnglianWater's @Lydia_Dareheath discusses the "Get River Positive" campaign - which includes rollout of nature-based solutions, transparency of data, and increased partnership working #APPGWater

On the need for a National Plan for Rivers, Dareheath highlights Water UK's "21st Century Rivers" report as a good starting point #APPGWater

Dareheath also discusses strategic investment and infrastructure, including the building of new reservoirs, and their Strategic Pipeline Partnership bringing water from Grimsby down to the South East #APPGWater

Dareheath highlights the importance of needing to be more water efficient, and welcomes WaterWise's efforts in helping consumers to become more water efficient #APPGWater

The webinar now moves on to a Q&A session #APPGWater

First Q is on how to get the "good news" story from the sector into the media. Dareheath notes she is an environmentalist who got into the sector to work on sustainability, but fears current graduates may be turned off from the sector by negative media reportage #APPGWater

Dareheath also notes that a lot of the media reportage - especially on sewage - deal with "downstream issues", whereas improving building regs (e.g. S3) would address those issues upstream & help us treat water as a resource #APPGWater

Wheeldon also suggests that some eNGOs "thrive on bad news" as it helps "energise their base". Also says that the (good development) of greater transparency from the sector on storm overflows has led to "data being used as information" #APPGWater

Wheeldon argues that increased data needs to be paired with increased education - helping people to understand the data & what is affecting the water quality: whether it is sewage, agricultural runoff or other issues #APPGWater

Wakeman welcomes the fact it was the EA that pushed the sector into publishing EDM data as it helped us to understand when where & why storm overflows are happening - which has led to investment and improvements in the network #APPGWater

While Wakeman says it is "regrettable" that some data has been used to "unfairly" criticise water companies, it has also "held a mirror" to their performance. #APPGWater

Wakeman gives the example of a #fatberg found in a sewer network that was "bigger than the leaning tower of #Pisa". While the berg was made of unflushables, so consumer behaviour change is needed, she questions how it was allowed to grow so big #APPGWater

On a Q on why water efficiency has "fallen off the political radar", panellists argue that part of it is due to water company performance being judged on uninterrupted supply and low costs, which has created a false idea of the cost of water #APPGWater

It is argued that the water sector could learn lessons from the energy sector, linking efficiency with wider impacts on environmental and human health, as well as lower costs #APPGWater

On how to get "buy in", Dareheath notes that there are many sectors who impact on water health - such as developers, farmers & water companies - so simple solutions often not obviously available #APPGWater

Dareheath also calls for Water Efficiency Labelling for consumer goods, similar to energy efficiency labels. Wakeman agrees, and says that water companies have a bigger role to play in communicating water efficiency to bill payers #APPGWater

Wheeldon says that the cheap cost of water means that we do not value it until there is an event such as a drought - and that this needs to change if we are to get the investment we need to ensure water is always abundant #APPGWater

On lessons can be learned from best practise from overseas, Wheeldon says there is evidence to suggest that England & Wales are ahead of many EU countries in terms of data collected & transparency of data #APPGWater

Wheeldon also notes that in many EU countries, water is managed by "dozens of small municipal govts" as opposed to across wider catchments covered by water companies #APPGWater

Wheeldon also argues that data needs to get better at "linking people to water" - for example, releasing funding to allow individuals to separate rainwater & sewage pipes on their properties, rather than expecting water companies to foot the bill downstream #APPGWater

On regulation, Wheeldon also notes that there is no one regulator for surface water, with responsibilities split across the environment, the highways, local government and developers all being responsible for their individual parts with their own regulators #APPGWater

Other panellists agree that it would be a useful development to have a regulator that is responsible for enforcing the SuDS hierarchy #APPGWater

Really interesting debate on future of #water management. Thanks Matt Wheldon, Helen Wakeman & @Lydia_Dareheath for your insights, to @LizTwistMP & @AnneCMcIntosh for chairing & @APPGwater for hosting! #APPGWater