The Wildlife Trusts want to see a new approach that better coordinates all decisions that impact water that gives more local power and influence over how water is managed and puts nature recovery and climate resilience at the heart of what water companies do. 

One water system – but many different organisations

Water doesn’t neatly divide itself into separate problems.

What happens upstream affects communities and wildlife downstream. How land is managed can affect water quality and flooding. Taking too much water from rivers can damage wildlife and make droughts worse. Decisions about sewage, farming, development, flood management and water supply can all affect the same river. 

Yet these issues are often planned and managed separately. 

Responsibility is currently divided between water companies, regulators, national government and other organisations. This can make it difficult to see who is ultimately responsible for ensuring our rivers and wider water environment are healthy. 

The Wildlife Trusts believe we need a much more joined-up approach – one that looks at the health of whole river catchments and makes decisions closer to the communities and landscapes they affect.

Your MP can help - ask them to take action today. 

Give local areas the power to restore their rivers 

The Independent Water Commission has proposed creating Regional Water Authorities in England. The Government has welcomed the idea in principle but has yet to set out exactly how they would work or what powers they would have. 

We believe they need to be ambitious. 

Regional Water Authorities could bring together decisions about water supply, wastewater, water quality, river restoration, flood management and drought resilience – issues which are currently dealt with through different systems despite being closely connected. 

Crucially, they need real powers rather than simply becoming another layer of bureaucracy. 

We want them to be able to set ambitious targets for restoring rivers and have the powers needed to achieve them. That should include tackling pollution from different sources, managing the amount of water taken from rivers and setting limits on the nutrients entering individual river catchments. 

They should also be democratically accountable, so local people can see who is responsible for improving their rivers and hold them to account for progress. 

Make polluters pay for recovery 

Restoring our rivers will require investment. 

We want Regional Water Authorities to have access to a dedicated Water Recovery Fund, bringing together money from sources including water company budgets, pollution fines and levies on polluting industries. 

This money could then be invested where it will make the greatest difference locally – including working with regenerative farmers and landowners, who are investing in nature-based solutions. That could mean restoring wetlands, reconnecting rivers with their floodplains and keeping more water in our landscapes through healthy soils. 

These measures don't just help wildlife. Healthy wetlands, soils and rivers can help us cope with increasingly extreme weather by slowing the flow of water during heavy rainfall and storing more of it during dry periods. 

Put nature at the heart of what water companies do 

Changing how we manage water locally is only part of the solution. Water companies themselves also need reform. 

At present, protecting and restoring nature is not a primary purpose of water companies. We believe it should be. 

Water companies should have a legal responsibility to actively contribute to nature recovery and climate resilience alongside providing drinking water and sewerage services.  

Their contribution should be measurable, and regulators need strong powers to act when companies fail to meet their obligations. This would help ensure that benefits for the public and environment are given greater priority in the way our water system is managed. 

And persistent failure should have consequences. 

Where a water company repeatedly fails its customers and the environment, Government should have the power to move it towards a publicly accountable, not-for-profit or co-operative model.  

Under these models, more money could be reinvested in better infrastructure, nature recovery and preparing our water system for a changing climate.

What we are asking Government to do 

As Government develops its plans for water reform, The Wildlife Trusts are calling for three big changes: 

1. Give local areas greater control over water 

Create powerful Regional Water Authorities that bring together responsibility for water quality, supply, river restoration, flooding and drought. 

These authorities should have the powers and funding to: 

• set and deliver ambitious targets for restoring local rivers;
• tackle pollution and manage the amount of water taken from rivers;
• manage water across whole catchments, rather than treating individual problems in isolation;
• establish local Water Recovery Funds, using water company funding, pollution fines and contributions from polluting industries to invest in river recovery and nature-based solutions; and
• be democratically accountable, so communities have a clear say in how their local water environment is managed. 

2. ‘Re-wire’ water companies to work for people and nature 

• Change the purpose and accountability of water companies so that nature recovery and climate resilience become core legal responsibilities, alongside providing water and sewerage services.
• Companies should be required to make measurable contributions to restoring nature and building resilience to climate change – with strong regulation and enforcement when they fail.
• Where water companies repeatedly fail their customers and the environment, Government should have a clear route to move them into publicly accountable, not-for-profit or co-operative ownership, allowing more money to be reinvested in infrastructure, nature recovery and resilient water supplies. 

3. Treat water as critical national infrastructure 

Water is not simply a commodity. It is fundamental to our health, food production, economy, wildlife and ability to cope with a changing climate. 

• Government should recognise water as critical national infrastructure and manage it for the long term. That means looking after the whole water system – from rivers and wetlands to reservoirs and water supplies – and investing in its resilience.
• By restoring wetlands, reconnecting rivers with their floodplains and keeping more water in the landscape, we can help nature recover while making communities more resilient to flooding, drought, wildfire and water shortages. 

Together, these three changes would begin to create a water system that is locally accountable, works in the public interest and recognises healthy rivers and landscapes as essential infrastructure for our future. 

Email your MP