Catchment and reservoir management

United Utilities owns 56,000 hectares of land in the North West, which is held to protect the quality of water entering the reservoirs.

The uplands play an important role in the supply of drinking water with approximately 60% of the water supplied to our customers originating from upland sources within Cumbria and the Pennines.

Our land ownership here mean that these areas are particularly important to us and we have invested substantially over the last 16 years in land management to protect and enhance these special habitats. However, we recognise that there is more to do to create a resilient water environment and we are currently developing our future plans to deliver more through our Catchment Systems Thinking Approach, also known as CaST.

A background to our land and reservoirs

Did you know that 60% of our land is in National Parks (The Lake District and The Peak District) and Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty while 40% of our land is designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI)? These areas are the finest sites for wildlife and natural features in England, supporting many rare and endangered species, habitats, and natural features.

The main activities that take place on our catchment land are farming, recreation, forestry, and biodiversity enhancement.

We own over 100 reservoirs across the North West. These reservoirs store rain water coming off the catchment land (mainly upland and woodland) before it is transported, via pipes, to the water treatment works.

While the primary purpose of owning catchment land and reservoirs is to capture and store rain water for drinking, there are numerous other benefits, responsibilities, and activities associated with these assets.

This is where Catchment Systems Thinking (CaST) comes in. CaST is an approach that ensures we, at United Utilities, view the entire catchment in a holistic fashion – considering the impacts of our activities on the customers, communities, and environment which interact with it.

We will explore the key CaST themes below:

Improving the quality of water

Owning catchment land and working with other landowners and partners allows us to manage the land in a way that is beneficial to good, raw water quality. The better the quality of water coming off our land helps to keep water treatment bills down.

Well managed natural environments like woodland and moorland help to slow the flow of water across the region, preventing soil being washed into the reservoir during storms, and helping to filter the water before it flows into the reservoir.

Through the delivery of the ground-breaking ‘Sustainable Catchment Management Programme’ (SCaMP) in 2005, United Utilities is recognised within the UK water industry as being at the forefront of catchment management.

Now, we are further developing our delivery in this area, taking in the wider needs of catchments across our business and beyond through the new, innovative Catchment Systems Thinking (CaST) approach – the evolution of SCaMP.

Many of the fragile habitats in our upland catchment areas have been damaged by historical industrial air pollution, agricultural activities, and climate change. Despite their protected SSSI (Site of Special Scientific Interest) status, large areas were designated by Natural England as being in unfavourable and declining condition.

Agricultural policies have encouraged farmers to drain the land and introduce more livestock. This has been at the expense of water quality, the landscape, and wildlife. The reason United Utilities started SCaMP was to begin to reverse these long-term trends, for the benefit of both water and wildlife.

United Utilities now has a joined-up catchment approach, regardless of land ownership, which supports the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs’ catchment-based approach to improving rivers and bathing waters. This approach relies heavily on working in partnership with other land owners and stakeholders to promote the principles of catchment systems thinking.

Similarly, we work closely with farmers on the catchment land to minimise the impact of farm pesticides and fertilisers which could flow into the reservoir.

Some of the activities we undertake include:

1. Fencing off the zones around the reservoir – taking this approach prevents animals from fouling near the water’s edge, significantly limiting the chance of direct run off.
2. Working in partnership with farmers to ensure that their animal by-products are disposed of in the correct manner and they have the facilities in place that make this feasible.
3. Planting trees around the catchment that limits run off into reservoirs.

Enhancing the natural environment

As we’ve mentioned above, 40% of our land is designated as a SSSI (Site of Special Scientific Interest). It is our job, as custodians of the land in the North West, to ensure that the natural environment is not only maintained but enhanced and allowed to thrive.

Following the report by Natural England which detailed that much of the land which is labelled as an SSSI is either in an unfavourable or declining a condition, we made it our goal to improve it.

Since 2005 we have undertaken SCaMP works across much of our catchment land and this work will continue in regard to activities in line with CaST.

The work we are undertaking across the region has mutual benefit, in delivering water of the highest while also enhancing the natural environment, so all those who interact with it can reap reward.

Access and recreation

We predict that more than 9 million people visit our catchment land over a 12-month period and in order to ensure that they can continue to do so enjoyably and safely, we invest a considerable amount in keeping the catchment clean and tidy.

We have a duty to promote access and recreation and we aim to deliver that duty in a way which protects and, where possible, enhances the biodiversity of that natural environment.

The majority of our reservoirs and catchment land are open access, with networks of footpaths and bridleways, and we encourage the community to enjoy our sites in a responsible manner. Catchment land, however, is for so much more than recreation and our work involves ensuring that this area remains capable of enhancing biodiversity.

We also have agreements in place on some of our reservoirs for sailing and fishing clubs, offering additional groups the opportunity to benefit from our exquisite landscapes.

Keeping the dams and those who use it safe

With a fleet of over 100 reservoirs, we have a duty to ensure dam and reservoir safety, which we take very seriously.

Our catchment controllers and supervising engineers are responsible for the operation, maintenance, inspection and improvements of our reservoirs. This involves:

• Ensuring water is being sent to the treatment works for supply
• Water being sent down the river for environmental protection
• Visual checks of the reservoir for safety reasons are regularly carried out
• Physical operation of the safety equipment at the reservoir is regularly undertaken
• Maintenance (grass cutting, repairs etc.) is upheld
• Any improvements required are undertaken

CaST and reservoir management

In applying a Catchment Systems Thinking approach to catchment and reservoir management it ensures we can provide great water to homes and businesses across the North West, now and for generations to come as well as improve the environment and provide beautiful recreational sites for the public to enjoy.