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A water scarcity problem shared is a problem halved – or more

Eastern England’s vast, fertile lands are essential to the nation’s food supply.

Project Water Resources Eastern England

ClientWater Resources East

ExpertiseIntegrated water resources management

Irrigated agriculture is concentrated in the region, contributing 40% of England’s vegetable crop output, worth approximately £2.8bn a year. The region is also the driest in the UK and 30% of its land mass is below sea level, making it highly vulnerable to the effects of climate change. Water Resources East (WRE) is pioneering an integrated approach to water resources planning to increase the resilience of the agricultural sector against drought and flooding and help meet demand to feed a growing population.

Our specialists are working with WRE to develop a bespoke framework for collaboration and shared decision-making by stakeholders from a wide range of industries. This will support the delivery of a long-term multisector strategy and plan that will define and prioritise the main vulnerabilities across the region and identify the best options to improve water and food security, as well as support economic growth and safeguard the environment.

Unless action is taken, Eastern England, home to 10.5 million people, is predicted to face a gap between water supply and demand of 750,000m³ a day – equivalent to 40 Olympic size swimming pools – by 2060 due to population growth and climate change. The key aim of the WRE’s strategy is to deliver a reliable, affordable and sustainable water supply for all users up to the year 2100.

WRE will increase the resilience and sustainability of the food and farming sector in Eastern England, which makes a significant contribution to the region’s economy and enables communities to grow and prosper. A secure supply of water is also vital for other industries, including power plants, which need water for cooling – 20% of which are in the region.

The WRE’s approach stresses the importance of water efficiency, reuse and recycling, cutting leakage, catchment management, and more efficient planning and use of infrastructure – measures that will all help to increase the climate resilience of the region’s water resources.

Sustainable levels of groundwater abstraction for agriculture and public water supplies will protect and enhance an environment that is home to some of the most important wetland and river systems in Britain including, the River Wensum and the Norfolk Broads, which are of international significance.

A water scarcity problem shared is a problem halved – or more

Eastern England’s vast, fertile lands are essential to the nation’s food supply.

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