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Today is World Water Day 2024 and this year’s theme is ‘Water for Peace’. This is an annual day the United Nations observe, that highlights the importance of fresh water.
World Water Day, advocated by many, is becoming paramount in times of political unrest and serves as a platform for raising awareness and sharing knowledge of water-related issues across the globe.
We are increasingly seeing the impacts of climate change, and the global population continues to rise, the need to conserve resources for now and future generations is of utmost significance. This means, protecting resources for human health, economic prosperity, food ecosystem and environmental needs, and the adoption of modern adaptation and mitigation strategies for communities.
Whilst the UK is generally perceived as abundant in water resources, we might not be as water rich as we think. The Environment Agency recently revealed that parts of Britain are extremely water stressed, with particular emphasis on the South of England, due to increasing demand from agriculture, manufacturing industries, and individual usage (did you know, the average person uses 150 litres of water a day?) along with dramatic variability in rainfall.
Much of the UK’s water resources meet regulatory standards, however, pollution from agriculture, surface runoff, urban drainage, and overflows of sewage, for example, can negatively impact water quality. Moreover, contaminants, such as pesticides and microplastics, present significant risks to our water quality, management of resources and sustainability.
The UK also has an ageing water infrastructure, almost 100 years old, and with a rich historical legacy, this means that unfortunately, much of our pipes, waste systems, and water plants are outdated, and require updating to meet our modern demands.
Flooding is also a huge issue in parts of the UK, in areas of urbanisation and land use change, which can increase flood vulnerability, damaging infrastructure, and ecosystems, and posing threats to our safety & well-being.
As we reflect on World Water Day, we seek to renew our commitment to the water sector, to protect and conserve this precious resource for current and future generations and to learn more about the challenges the water sector is facing. If you have any questions or comments about the water sector, please get in touch.
Take a look at some of our case studies here.