Members of the public want water companies to go beyond their legal requirements to the environment, with many urging the sector to do as much as possible in relation to the decline of biodiversity and climate change.
A survey by CCW into consumer attitudes towards the water environment and the role stakeholders should play in its protection highlighted the strength of support billpayers have for enhancing the natural world.
The qualitative survey gathered views on how people value and understand the water environment, their preferences for how it should be managed and on current policy related to it.
Participants ranked “managing the environmental impact of what they do” as a greater priority for companies than concerns around affordability or accessibility of services. Only providing clean water and treating used water were ranked as more important responsibilities.
Despite this sentiment, the survey showed low awareness of the impacts of sewage pollution, biodiversity loss, and the overall health of the water environment.
People had little knowledge about how the water environment is currently managed. CCW noted they had particularly low awareness of the roles of water companies and farmers.
The research showed a broad consensus that responsibility for managing water environments should be shared with water companies playing an active role, government providing leadership and strategy as well as providing regulation and enforcement.
Participants also supported the idea that anyone whose activities have a negative impact on the environment, such as farmers and developers also have a “significant responsibility”, likewise for consumers. However, respondents felt that may be limited by lack of knowledge of what to do and perceptions that individual actions do not make a difference.
CCW shared examples of the work companies already do to protect and enhance waterways and habitats with participants, which people previously had low awareness of. After learning about such work, respondents said it was appealing and influenced their views of water companies.
Knowing about the issues and the actions taken by the sector also helped people see the water environment as a collective responsibility and saw bills as “more justifiable” after understanding the scope of work involved in delivering water and removing sewage.
The qualitative survey, undertaken with Community Research in February 2021, reflected previous assertions that people have spent more time in nature during lockdown and showed clear evidence of people valuing these experiences highly.