Ofwat has today called on water companies to spell out plans for how they will cut the harm they cause to rivers in England.

Writing to the Chief Executives of the water companies in England, David Black, Ofwat's interim Chief Executive, said there were “significant concerns” that the sector was not meeting its obligations or public expectations on the safe treatment and return of wastewater to the environment, commenting:

“The roll out of comprehensive monitoring has revealed the frequent use of storm overflows as part of the day-to-day operation of the wastewater system. This cannot continue.”

Referring to new duties in the Environment Act 2021 for water companies to reduce environmental and public health harm from the use of storm overflows, he went on to comment that this came in light of new evidence that the companies are regularly releasing sewage into the environment through storm overflows, which are meant to be used as a safety valve to prevent the sewer network becoming overwhelmed at times of heavy rainfall.

He told the water chiefs that improving the sector's impact on rivers and reducing harm from storm overflows would require their companies to understand and address the root causes of the issue.

David Black said:

"I expect water companies to own responsibility for the impact they have on the environment. That means better measuring and monitoring to understand the impact as well as reducing the harm they cause.

"Customers and the wider public want to know how their water company is stepping up to address environmental concerns. Actions can and must start now, I want companies to spell out their actions and intended impacts and timeframes for reducing harm to our rivers."

Ofwat expects the company plans to run up to March 2025. The published plans should support, and relate to, any company response to forthcoming targets from Government regarding improvements to river quality.

Today's intervention comes after Ofwat issued a letter to water company remuneration committee Chairs reiterating that performance related remuneration should reflect performance for customers and the environment.

In parallel, Ofwat is conducting a live investigation related to companies' management of their wastewater treatment works. The regulator expects to issue an update in the coming weeks on the progress of this investigation and any further action it intends to take.

“Companies must act now – there is nothing in regulatory regime that prevents companies from tackling these issues immediately”, he said.

The letter says that to achieve a change in performance, the water companies will be expected to publish their plans to reduce the harm to river water quality from their activities, including those caused by storm overflows, before the end of April 2022.

The plans will also need to be specific about the actions to be taken, including their impact and time frames for delivery for the period to end of March 2025.

The letter concludes that by reminding the Chief Executives that the regulator has an ongoing investigation related to companies' management of their wastewater treatment works and that an update on progress, and any further action Ofwat intends to take, would be issued in the coming weeks.