USING RESEARCH TO INFORM INTEGRATED CATCHMENT MANAGEMENT

A regional business perspective

What is YW business perspective?Increasing costs treatment opex capex

What are the water quality trends?

• Significant challenges due to increasing colour

• Significant upward trends in nitrate concentrations aquifers

• Rising nitrate levels in rivers

• Number of catchments risk failing pesticide standard

Conventional Response to risk of failure - Blend - Treat - Abandon

Many land uses/other factors influence WQ

• Regulation is standard driven

• Tended to result in engineering solutions

• But times are a changing…. Water safety plans WFD Polluter pays

Protected drinking water statusClimate change

CarbonEconomics

OFWAT sustainability dutySDS – longer term view

Water Framework Directive

The overriding aim of Article 7:-

“ensure the necessary protection for the bodies of water

identified with the aim of avoiding deterioration in their quality in

order to reduce the level of purification treatment required in the

production of drinking water”

• Not unlimited protection• Significant improvement• Only applies to anthropogenic parameters

Water companies may see opportunities to address drinking water issues by encouraging changes to land management in the catchments providing raw water for public water supply.

If,

• the company owns the land;

• the land contributes to the achievement of the aims of the regulated business;

• the investment relates to changes in land management practice to meet a defined legal requirement; and

• the proposal is both cost effective compared with other options and is costbeneficial

OFWAT’s view on Catchment Solutions

Our Customers' Voice Our external challenge & YW 'headline' position Our objective Our priority Our aspirations to 2035 Our direction

Customers want a continuousuninterrupted water supply

Children and young people want water for future generations

Customers want high qualitydrinking water

Stakeholders want protection of Drinking Water quality

Children and young people want a water supply that is safe to drink

Customers want improving river water quality

Stakeholders want environmental considerations to be addressed

Regulatory regime (Economic)• RPI-X methodlogy works well• Increased 'carrot & stick' incentives required

Charging base and metering• Yorkshire is not water stressed• Metering based on customer choice - demand led• Innovation required to drive lower unit cost of metering

Rate of return and financing• Regulatory risk managed through a transparent & consistent approach• Setting returns in line with an appropriate cost of capital

Competition and mergers• Current regulatory regime works well• Retail competition increases risks• Support competition "for the market"

Striking the right balanceStrategic Direction Statement 2010-2035

• Innovate water resource management• Halve leakage• Develop real time Grid management• Expand the Grid in a measured way• Research variable and dynamic abstraction licences

Providing a customer experience

second to none

Delivering the very best drinking water quality

Zero drinking water quality failures

Zero interruptions

Our principle for all assets is ‘invisible operations - visible service’

• Improve service at reduced costs• Increase maintenance for water distribution and sewerage assets• Work towards national service standard for interruptions • Promote a strong, innovative, vibrant supply chain• Drive research and innovation in service delivery.

Financial institutions requirereturns on investment

New environmental obligations• Investment should demonstrate clear benefits & be justified by sound environmental science• A need to resolve conflict between obligations and CO2

• Measured & phased approach required

Delivering attractive returns for investors

and lenders over the long term

Have no water restrictions

Customers want excellent all-round customer service

Ensuring there is never a need for water

supply restrictions

A strong ENVIRONMENTAL

focus

A customerSERVICE

experiencesecond to none

Going beyond environmental

compliance

Customers want to prevent sewer internal flooding to homes

Children and young people want tosee climate change being tackled

AttractiveRETURNS

for investors

Stopping our sewers flooding homes and businesses

Attract investors through our out-performance

Zero pollution incidents

Zero flooding of homes as a result of failure of our assets

Stakeholders want to see reduced leakage

• Understand our sewerage network in real time• Build capability to forecast and manage environmental improvements supported by 'next generation' of hydraulic modelling• Continue to target risk based investment efficiently

• Maintain an efficient financial structure by being flexible and responsive to market conditions• Attract new 'low cost' investment to finance service and environmental improvements• Meet the needs of exisiting and new financial stakeholders• Differentiate ourselves through operational and capital out-performance

Providing tailored services

for customers

Provide tailored services and greater choice

• Listen to our customers and provide a greater say in products and services• Develop innovative communication channels • Explore additional valued added services• Expand real time provision of data for Business customers' use

Provide the lowest possible prices• Continue to be lean, fit and customer focused through our core services• Drive innovation and out-performance to deliver lowest possible prices

• Provide protection against flooding for 1 in 30 year events• Work towards National standards to respond to climate change• Develop 'next generation' hydraulic modelling• Increase sewerage network maintenance investment

• Continuously improve water supply resilience• Use risk based water safety plans• Develop catchment management• Further reduce distribution discolouration• Monitor and operate the network in real time

Reducing leakage significantly

Halve existing levels of leakage .

• Halve exisiting leakage levels and contribute to a healthy water resource balance• Drive our carbon footprint down • Promote emerging technologies in detection and repair

Climate change• Investment only where the benefits exceed the carbon impact• Understand the impacts• Requires new legislative approaches• Mitigation and adaptation

Mitigating our carbon footprint & adapting

to climate change

Meet greenhouse gas emission targets as set by Government.

• Mitigate our carbon footprint by driving new carbon initiatives• Work with Government to reduce the impact of legislation• Undertake strategic research to enable the adaption of our assets to climate change

Affordability for customers• Driving for lowest possible price levels• Challenge environmental pressures toallow water supply and flooding investment• Social tariffs should be addressed by Government

The lowest possible PRICES

for customersCustomers want value for money

Providing the lowest possible prices

Stakeholders want to see improved maintenance of our assets

e.g. pipes and sewers.World class ASSET management and great PEOPLE • Recruit and develop technical and business leaders

• Inspire everyone to achieve our Vision

Strategic Direction Statement

Delivering the very best drinking water quality

Zero drinking water quality failures

• Continuously improve water supply resilience• Use risk based water safety plans• Develop catchment management• Further reduce distribution discolouration• Monitor and operate the network in real time

Yw response

Agricultural Land Management Strategy R & D

Three integrated projects to assess:

– Agricultural measures to improve WQ

– Targeting need for agricultural measures

– Assessing potential improvement

– Influencing for change

– Impact on agriculture (economic & social)

Catchment Sensitive Farming

• Ingbirchworth Catchment (near Penistone)

• Nitrate Vulnerable Zone compliant

• Nutrient sampling – water & soils

• Nutrient modelling

• Demonstration days and 121 Farm Advice

Comes down to one simple question……

…….does catchment management work!

2,4-D

Clopyralid

Triclopyr

CMPP

MCPA

Imazapyr

Fluroxypyr

Voluntary Initiative - Ingbirchworth Catchment Pesticide Sampling 2003 Pesticides Identified as >0.1 ug/l

2003 15 detections above treated water standard

2,4-D

Clopyralid

Triclopyr

CMPP

MCPA

Imazapyr

Fluroxypyr

2005 5 detections above treated water standard

Voluntary Initiative - Ingbirchworth Catchment Pesticide Sampling 2005 Pesticides Identified as >0.1 ug/l

2,4-D

Clopyralid

Triclopyr

CMPP

MCPA

Imazapyr

Fluroxypyr

2007 0 detections above treated water standard

Voluntary Initiative - Ingbirchworth Catchment Pesticide Sampling 2007 Pesticides Identified as >0.1 ug/l

Activities undertaken to reduce pesticides

• Training & Awareness sessions (Calibration Cards etc.)

• Education visits to adjacent WTW to explain processes

• Amnesty on expired products

• Identifying key players in the catchment

• Helping Agronomists & Contract Sprayers understand the issues – their increased use of wetters/ alternative products

• Closer working with tenants to better understand their pesticide usage and crop needs

• Development of Crop Management Plans

• Encourage alternative crops with lesser pesticide needs

Low Pasture

12

5Doxstar04/06

1

98

Growth regulator04/06 Claymore

04/0612

141

16

28

27 26

2524

18

19

21

23

Claymore04/06

20

17

2006 – chemical application

Doxstar04/06

Claymorel04/06

Doxstar04/06

Claymore04/06

Alistell 06/06

Doxstar&wetter05/06

2,4-D05/06

2,4-D05/06

1997 2006 - 7

Coincides with v high rainfall eventsShould we look at length of crop fast times?

Dissolved Organic Carbon

Affects about 70% of our resources…

Colour

1990 to 2007 y = 0.0214x - 662.76

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

350

400

31-Jan-90 27-Oct-92 24-Jul-95 19-Apr-98 13-Jan-01 10-Oct-03 06-Jul-06 01-Apr-09 27-Dec-11

Date

Co

lou

r m

g/l

Miex?

0

100

200

300

400

500

600

700

0 0.05 0.1 0.15 0.2 0.25 0.3 0.35 0.4 0.45 0.5

Burn Cl.1 on Deep peat (Proportion ArcSin)

Ha

zen

(N

ov/D

ec m

ean

)

Area of burning most significant relationship

Bckground level of colour loss or impact vegetation alone?

Grip blocking (ditch drains)

Condition Mean Median

Blocked 88.0 73.8

Unblocked 112.8 125.6

UK-wide: impact of blocking on colour Blocking reduces water colour

Acrotelm

Catotelm

- water movement in peat

SUBSOIL

Colour

Healthy blanket bog

Degraded bog• Living plants, biologically active • Zone of water movement

Catotelm

- saturated peat

Acrotelm

How does a bog degrade & form colour?

What does good look like for colour….

How do we achieve this?

Water Quality

Grouse

Farming

Landscape

Carbon

Flooding

Access

Biodiversity

??

??

Multiple objectives and interests…..

Catchment Solutions Require:

• Development and assessment of methodologies at catchment

scale

• Understanding of the economics

• Understanding time, certainty and security

• Further R&D on interactions