River Basin Management Plans face judicial review

Photo: UK Rivers NetworkThe Angling Trust and WWF have launched a legal challenge over inadequate plans to safeguard the health of rivers and lakes in England. Lodging the documents at the High Court is the first step in the process of applying for a judicial review of the government’s River Basin Management Plans which were submitted to the EU in December to comply with the Water Framework Directive.

If the challenge is successful it will have big implications for investment in the water sector. The two organisations are challenging the legality of the plans because they do not set specific targets or a coherent timeframe to address the poor ecological status of many rivers and lakes in England. The plans also rely heavily on a wide range of reasons for inaction which the Directive only allows to be used in exceptional circumstances.



Currently only 27% of rivers are at ‘good’ status and the Governments plans only increase this by 5%  by 2015. It’s the view of many environmental groups that the EA and Government are not being ambitious enough in their targets. The Environment Agency and water companies are coming under increased pressure with the sustained campaign by the Sunday Times on combined sewer overflows. This comes at a difficult time for the government as it struggles to reduce expenditure. However given that the water companies are privatized this may be an opportunity for the government to show its green credentials. With more people anticipated to take holidays in the UK this year and increasing public concern over bathing water quality it is likely that the pressure to raise standards will only increase underwriting continued investment in the water sector for years to come.  

Major decline in Ireland's water quality will drive investment

Ireland’s Environmental Protection Agency in its recently released report found; “a dramatic loss in the percentage of high ecological river sites over the last 20 years”.

One of the key findings was that 30% of Irish rivers were of high ecological status in 1987. By 2008 this had dropped to 17%, located in less densely populated, less developed and less intensively farmed areas.

The suspected causes of this dramatic loss are nutrient inputs, siltation, and acidification associated with activities such as forestry, agriculture and housing development.

Commenting on the findings of the report Dara Lynott, Director, EPA Office of Environmental Enforcement said: The scale of the task of achieving the Water Framework Directive is now becoming clearer. In addition to applying protective measures to those sites assigned high and good ecological status almost 50% of rivers and lake water bodies will require restorative measures; while 40% of estuaries and coastal waters will also need to be restored”

It is clear that the scale of the task facing Ireland to meet the requirements of the Water Framework Directive are huge. This could not have happened at a worse time when Ireland is in a major financial crisis. Justifying the expenditure will be tough but investment is essential to avoid prosecution by the EU and protect the environment.  The broader benefits of environmental investment will need to be recognized – such as job creation and protecting tourism. It will require all parties (EPA, Government, developers, farmers et al) to think creatively and work together to design the innovative solutions that will be required.