Water statistics

Introduction Peter Helm Nick Haigh

 What water statistics do we need?  Do we have the structure/sources coming together to achieve this?  Having the correct access and dissemination  It’s a complex landscape Our Vision

 Driven by failure to meet the non- mandatory EU reporting requirements  EU reviewing their requirements  Important opportunity to consider this in relation to UK user needs  Enabled us to review the landscape to establish what is available and identify gap filling options Water statistics grant

CellsUK %EU % T1Renewable Freshwater resources T2Annual freshwater abstraction by source and by sector T3Water Made available for use22027 T4aWater use by supply category and sector T4bWater use in manufacturing industry TO-BalanceWater use balance3012 T5Population connected to waste water treatment plants T6Treatment capacity of waste water treatment plants T7Sewage Sludge production and disposal T8Generation and discharge of waste water Eurostat / OECD Joint Questionnaire Analysis of Response

Water facts

 EU Blueprint to safeguard Europe’s water resources  Water Framework Directive  Water Bill (England) – improving resilience, promoting retail choice, encouraging innovation and growth  EU resource efficiency indicators – water exploitation index, water productivity.  Abstraction reform Policy dimension/questions: EU and UK

 The energy companies had the information available  DECC controlling the collection of information  The industry had considerable interest in using the resulting aggregate outputs  The requirements were realistic/practical  More limited range of organisations to deal with  Unknowns are larger in the water industry Anything we can learn from the energy sector?

Improving use of rainwater by crops, trees etc, adapting to climate change Improving quality of water stocks, monitoring and valuing ecosystem condition Replenishment of groundwater stocks; abstraction regime reform Improving efficiency of use of Public Water Supply Management of sewage treatment regime (UWWTD) Reduction of effluent, disposal of sludge, release of contaminants The need for water statistics The water cycle and policy issues 1 October 2013

Resource use and well being

 Have national data sets on groundwater and surface water  Compile water use and abstraction figures by industry and household. Collect information in farm surveys. Lessons for the UK ?  Importance of joined up thinking across the industry  Importance of getting links with wider business surveys  Use of remote sensing to estimate water balances by river basis district ?  Further examination of the Structure of their abstraction / discharge data  Collection of water data in the farming surveys Example from The Netherlands

UK Water information system

 Complex landscape. Different organisations with different definitions  Coverage and completeness of the administrative data  Linkage of abstraction and discharge data  Need to validate assumed loss factors  Water company information on users  Access to information – Met office  Methodology  Consistency of reporting  Information collected and industry detail from ONS Challenges

 Freshwater resources  Water Quality  Gross and net abstraction  Non household use of water supply  Water efficient devices  Population connected to waste water treatment plants  Waste water treatment  Pollutants in effluents  Economic data Outcome of the research by WRC and Defra statisticians

Freshwater resources  The Centre of Ecology and Hydrology (CEH) a public sector research centre collects data for completing the joint questionnaire.  Requires information on precipitation, evaporation and transpiration from plants, boreholes and river flows.  Further work is needed to develop and test the methodology to provide complete, national and river basin estimates.  Consider further with CEH  Assess cost benefits for taking this forward.

Water Quality  Not required for the joint questionnaire this is potentially required for producing water accounts  Data from WFD reporting can be used for producing UK level estimates  Information can distinguish the quality of water bodies into classifications of: high, good, moderate, poor or bad. Information is not available at UK level, it is available for individual countries, to show the quality in respect of different types of uses eg fish status, dissolved oxygen, ph etc.  With monitoring taking place on the basis of risk, more difficult to bring annual figures together  Discussion in progress on how to produce a UK wide annual assessment of biological quality, overall or environmental

Gross and net abstraction  Direct water abstraction by sector (excluding impact of discharges) is reasonably robust for England and Wales.  Existing datasets of abstraction and discharge volumetric data are not well suited to estimating net direct freshwater abstraction by industrial sector.  The datasets would require a significant overhaul if they are to provide estimates.  This includes: Fuller reporting, Information on abstraction and discharge licences where co located and cross referenced, all referenced points assigned to a SIC code,assumed loss factors to be validated by key sectors  Consider future possibilities with the Environment Agencies.

Non household use of water supply  Water companies can provide broad sector breakdown (Jq table 4) but insufficient to provide the manufacturing ( Jq table 4 b)  Issues include  a)Availability  b)Confidentiality  c)Burden on water companies  Future options include considering whether this data is needed by any Central Market Agency or whether information could be sourced through such surveys as the Annual Business Survey  Consider future options

Water efficient devices  WRc ( the Contractor) were asked to assess the information available from water companies on the use of water efficient devices, five companies were approached.  Evidence suggested that improvements can be made from toilets & showers  Estimates of savings are lower than thought  Fuller investigation requires  a)More information on the number of specific devices installed  b)Improved knowledge on uptake of devices  c)Identify the longevity of savings  d)Identify wider take up of devices from retailers and builder’s merchants  Consider the need for further research and how this is done.

Waste water Population connected to waste water treatment plants  Data available for 2008, 2009 and 2010 for England and Wales  No longer routinely collected by OFWAT in June return Waste water treatment  Data available every 2 years under urban waste water treatment directive. Collected by the UK Environment Agencies and submitted to the EU  The Directive doesn’t cover the smaller population areas (approx 8% UK pop)  Unlikely to be collected in future  Sort out inconsistencies with WISE.  Estimate for gaps if important for Eurostat collection

Pollutants in effluent  UK Environment Agencies provide data to Ricardo –AEA who compiles the UK Pollutant Release and Transfer Register which is submitted to the EU.  Inventory information provided for 8 of the 13 pollutants  Provides information above the thresholds  Data collection is unlikely to increase  Consider more estimation if this is a critical EU requirement.

Economic data relating to water supply and sewage system  Would be needed for the production of water accounts (DEFRA is leading)  Information available partially provides data  Main sources: ONS surveys ( economy, household & prices) and EA (charges and Household bills)  Issues include :  a)ONS classification of companies  b)Industrial breakdown of license activity  c)Wider expenditure on water and waste management  d)Financing  e)Expenditure on the protection and remediation of soil, groundwater and surface water  Need to consider priority data requirements and then consider how to fill gaps.  Further discussion required with ONS.

Thankyou. Any questions?

 Forming a group to consider priority needs  Consider the implications of changing policy  Collaborating to better meet the needs  Pro active in advising Eurostat on key requirements and better linking of policy/statistical requirements Conclusions and discussion points