Environment
The environment we care for
Our work for the environment is about halting the decline of nature and leaving places better than we found them.
The mix of different landscapes in the South West makes it a particularly special place to look after. We have amazing partners who work with us to keep it thriving, like the Wildlife Trusts, West Country Rivers Trust, South West Lakes Trust, the Environment Agency, Natural England and many more.
Here’s a glimpse into the places we help manage.
Taking responsibility
Operating water and wastewater networks comes hand-in-hand with working with, and for, the environment. We're working hard to reduce the impact our operations have on the environment, including areas like carbon emissions, biodiversity and water quality.
Some of our activities that impact the environment are:
Abstraction
This is when we take water out of the environment for treating into drinking water. We're heavily monitored on this by the Environment Agency who outline exactly how much we can take and when. This is particularly tricky during drought conditions when demand remains the same but the amount of available water is low.
Treatment
Pumping
Pumping stations help water and wastewater travel uphill (and the South West has many hills!). This also takes a huge amount of energy. We’ve done a lot of work to make our pumps as efficient as possible.
Overflows
Maintenance
When roads, fields or moors need digging up for us to access pipes and valves that need fixing, we make sure to return those areas to how we found them. We’ve also committed in improving biodiversity at those sites.
Our biodiversity strategy
WaterFit Live maps
WaterFit Live is our way of sharing with you near real-time data about our storm overflows, and whether they are impacting the quality of your bathing waters.
