Utility Week

36 | MARCH 2023 | UTILITY WEEK Water Event Stopping the blame game onpollution Discussions at 2023's Wastewater Conference included busting myths on storm overfl ows, developing catchment solutions and tackling the problems caused by pharmaceutical pollution. Ofwat: PR24 could see three- fold investment boost Investment levels for the next price review from 2025 are anticipated to be two to three times greater than the current period, the Wastewater Conference 2023 heard. Ofwat's senior director of strategy, • nance and infrastructure, John Russell, laid out the need for • nancial investment now and in future asset management periods (AMPs) to meet the challenges the sector is facing. This will inevitably mean bills increasing, but Russell stressed the need for innovation in billing. "We haven't seen much price tari† innova- tion," Russell said, and added that the sector had not previously had to consider a† ord- ability in the same way it does now. "We cannot have a situation where investment doesn't happen because of a† ordability." In terms of balancing a† ordability at a di‰ cult time for household • nances and the need for increased investment, Russell described the "perfect storm" for the water sector in that the public perception would be of bills rising without discernible improve- ments to service or performance. He was speaking prior to the announce- ment that water bills in England and Wales will rise by 7.5% from April, while charges in Scotland will increase by 5%. Jon Rathgen, deputy director of water policy at the Scottish government, said the impacts of economic pressures on household • nances has changed how bills are being considered in Scotland. At the start of the current investment cycle in Scotland, government had given Scottish Water freer reign than previously. The com- pany, which is funded through taxes rather than water bills, had planned to spend more in 2023/24 but this was pared back, which Rathgen said would have consequences for investment and what the company could deliver in the coming years. Both Russell and Rathgen underlined that communicating bill rises with customers View from the chair O ne of the things that struck me from the fascinating presen- tations and debates over the two days of the conference was the excitement in the room. Whether it was the game-chang- ing potential of nature-based solutions, dreams of a bio resources re• nery or the myriad elements of a future circular economy, the conference hall was • zzing with ideas and ambition. Sharing this sense of optimism makes it all the more depressing to see how the sec- tor is routinely pilloried in both traditional and social media, not least through a sus- tained social media campaign by the sec- tor's arch critic, musician Feargal Sharkey, front man of rock band the Undertones. This criticism was tackled head-on at the conference by Richard Aylard, sus- tainability director at Thames Water, who talked of the need to "bust the myth of sewage dumping". He has been instrumen- tal in the publication of Thames' near live data about sewage spills. As Aylard pointed out, "people who dump stu† don't tend to publish real- time interactive maps of where they plan to do it". He said this transparency is a crucial step in developing a nuanced con- versation about protecting our waterways. But he accepted that the company had opened itself up to further potshots – espe- cially given that the tool was launched a› er a prolonged spell of heavy rain. It was a message echoed by Nick Mills, of Southern Water, when he talked about the challenges of launching the Beachbuoy monitoring tool. However, both said they had accepted the necessity to publish as much data as possible – even that which paints them in a bad light. Through open dialogue with their local communities and bodies, both companies are hoping to turn critics into collaborators. This is also the aim of the Catchment Systems Thinking Co-operative (CaSTCo), a fascinating project being spearheaded by United Utilities as part of the Ofwat innova- tion fund that seeks to harness the power of citizen scientists across the country. CaSTCo aims to develop a standardised framework for community catchment mon- itoring. While Thames is showcasing the power of automation, the point of CaSTCo is to empower communities to identify the most appropriate areas for utilisation of tech and investment. Amina Aboobakar, of United Utilities but currently seconded to the Rivers Trust, sparked a great discussion about engag- ing communities on the protection of their local waterways, with companies, regula- tors and the supply chain all giving their view. There seemed to be a consensus that while water companies may never be able to win around Sharkey, opening up data and embracing the power of citizen science is a critical step in ending the pollution blame game. James Wallin, editor

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