Water industry regulator Ofwat has published its report to Defra on climate change adaptation.
Under the Climate Change Act 2008, the Secretary of State at the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs can require organisations with functions “of a public nature” to report progress on adapting to climate change.
In 2010 Ofwat was directed by the Government to provide a report under this power - Ofwat submitted its report to Defra in May 2011. The report explains:
- how climate change might affect Ofwat's success as economic regulator
- Ofwat's assessment of the risks of climate change, and which are most important
- the actions and plans Ofwat has put in place to deal with those risks.
The Government has now assessed the report and has published it on the Defra website.
Ofwat said the report represents a significant development in its understanding of climate change risks and how as a regulator, can help deal with them. The report highlights the following issues:
- In the water and sewerage sectors, the most important risks relate to water availability, flooding and the capacity of the sewer system to cope with future weather.
- Ultimately, it is the companies’ responsibility to adapt. Ofwat's role in tackling the risks is to provide the right regulatory incentives to enable the companies to adapt.
- Ofwat's regulatory system already enables water and sewerage companies to adapt in a number of ways.
- There are a range of potential barriers and constraints which Ofwat must work to address.
- The regulator's programme of work and the specific actions it has planned will help to better enable efficient adaptation to climate change.
The report falls in three parts:
- a summary report which sets out the main conclusions
- a technical report which explains these in more detail
- a supporting process document which explains how Ofwat met the requirements of the statutory guidance
Ofwat said it would use the report and its findings to inform its approach to regulation in future.