Licensed water extractors should adopt a water trading system, to ensure water supplies are not affected during drought, according to the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE).
The ‘Water Shares’ system, proposed by Defra in its consultation on abstraction reform, would give extractors a share in the available water resource, rather than an absolute amount, encouraging them to take a shared responsibility for water resources in catchments.
According to the ICE, this move would increase the value placed on water and help to bring about a more collaborative approach to managing catchments but its benefits would depend on effective implementation, management and regulation.
Michael Norton, chair of ICE’s expert water panel, said: “’Water trading will require increased storage and interconnections.
“Water companies should be incentivised through the regulatory regime, to develop multi-use water resources which benefit society, the environment and industry.”
Defra is currently considering the responses to its consultation, ‘making the most of every drop’, which ended in March.
However, the ICE has urged Defra to develop an overarching UK water resource strategy as well, claiming that abstraction reform on its own will not be enough.
Norton said: “While ICE supports the concept of abstraction licence reform there is still no overarching water security strategy.
“Abstraction licence reform would form a part of an overarching strategy – however, without this strategy there is a risk that abstraction reform will progress in isolation and not account for other aspects of improving the UK’s water security, such as increased water storage, interconnections and demand management.”