Climate change and drinking water: why collaboration matters more than ever

With climate change increasing the frequency and intensity of extreme weather, adapting our essential infrastructure has never been more important.

Ahead of World Environmental Health Day, CIEH member Matthew Jones, Public Health Manager at Wessex Water (pictured below), examines how this summer's extreme heat affected water supplies and explains why collaboration is key to creating a more resilient water system for the future...

This summer has provided a stark reminder of the impacts that climate change can have on our water resources, with reservoir levels falling, hosepipe bans introduced across the country and large parts of England entering drought status.

Ten Environment Agency areas remain in drought status with the remaining four areas in prolonged dry weather status. Around 30 million people are still subject to temporary water-use restrictions, national reservoir storage is almost 20% below average and groundwater levels continue their seasonal decline (Environment Agency - Dry weather and drought in England).

The UK is known for its rain and wet weather so drought and water shortages may feel like issues usually associated with other parts of the world. Yet this summer has shown that the UK is not immune to the effects of a changing climate. Not only does climate change bring drier periods, but it also brings more intense rainfall and extreme weather events, increasing the risk of flooding and water quality challenges in many areas.

Climate change is increasing the risk of both too much water and too little water. Neither challenge can be managed by a single organisation, and protecting public health depends on effective collaboration between water companies, environmental health practitioners, local authorities, public health teams and regulators.

For those of us working in environmental health, this raises an increasingly important question - how do we work together to ensure communities continue to have access to safe and sufficient drinking water in a changing climate?

Looking beyond drought

The recent drought period has brought into focus the importance of water sufficiency and resilience, but it is only part of the climate change picture.

The UK Climate Change Risk Assessment identifies increasing risks relating to water availability, water quality and infrastructure as our climate changes. Climate projections suggest we can expect both more intense rainfall events and longer periods of dry weather in the future. These aren't separate challenges; they are different sides of the same issue. The water cycle is becoming more extreme, and with that comes greater risks to both water supply and water quality.

When we talk about drinking water, it is easy to separate issues of quality and quantity. In reality, they are closely linked.

Prolonged dry weather can place pressure on water resources and reduce the resilience of supplies, particularly as demand for water often increases significantly during these periods. At the same time, flooding and extreme rainfall can affect source water quality, increase the pressure on treatment processes and create new pathways for contaminants. Floodwater can contain sediment, nutrients, and other pollutants that may be transported into rivers, reservoirs and groundwater sources. The Drinking Water Inspectorate (DWI) has highlighted concerns that more frequent storms and floods could place greater pressure on raw water quality and treatment processes.

For the communities using public or private drinking water supplies, the distinction between water quality and water sufficiency is often irrelevant. Whether a supply becomes unavailable because it has run dry or because the water is no longer safe to drink, the public health consequences can be significant.

Tackling climate change and protecting our drinking water is a shared responsibility.
One thing that has become increasingly clear is that no single organisation has all the answers. Collaboration is one of the most effective ways of responding to the challenges that climate change presents for drinking water.

Water companies understand water resources, catchment management and drinking water treatment. Local authorities have an important role in community resilience, emergency planning and the regulation of private water supplies. Public health teams help identify vulnerable populations and understand the potential impacts on communities. Environmental health practitioners often sit at the centre of these conversations and can often be the link between water issues and community impacts. Whether regulating private water supplies, contributing to emergency response arrangements, supporting local resilience planning or helping vulnerable communities prepare for disruption, environmental health has an important role to play in climate adaptation.

Each organisation sees a different part of the picture. Bringing those perspectives together helps create a more complete understanding of the risks that communities may face and a shared approach for responding to the challenges.

Learning through partnership working

In the South West, the Water Health Partnership seeks to bring together environmental health practitioners, local authorities, public health professionals, regulators and water companies to discuss issues where water and health intersect. Like many successful partnerships, its value comes from creating a forum for organisations to share experiences, discuss emerging risks, build relationships and learn from one another.

One area that has received increasing attention is the issue of insufficient and unwholesome water supplies.

While public water supplies benefit from investment, infrastructure and regulatory drivers, private water supplies can be more vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. Heavy rainfall can affect source water quality, while prolonged dry periods can reduce source yields and threaten sufficiency of supply. These are precisely the types of climate-related challenges that many rural communities will face more frequently in the future.

Recognising this, the partnership has established a dedicated working group focusing on insufficient and unwholesome water. The group has been exploring how organisations can develop a more consistent approach to raising awareness of water sufficiency issues, support private water supply owners and share good practice across the region.

The discussions have reinforced the importance of taking a proactive approach. Helping people understand risks before they become problems is often one of the most effective forms of public health protection.

Preparing for tomorrow's challenges today

One of the recurring themes in climate adaptation is the importance of preparedness.

This is one of the reasons the Water Health Partnership is developing a multi-agency loss of supply exercise based on the loss of a large private water supply, either as a result of deteriorating water quality or prolonged drought conditions.

Exercises like this provide an opportunity to test plans, understand how organisations would work together and identify potential gaps before a real incident occurs. They also help build relationships and trust between organisations, which are vital to responding to these emergencies in a real situation.

Building resilience together

The challenges highlighted by this summer's drought are unlikely to be isolated events. We will likely continue to see drier summers and winters with more extreme weather events.

Access to safe and sufficient drinking water remains one of the foundations of public health. Protecting that foundation in a changing climate will require collaboration between water companies, local authorities, regulators, public health teams and environmental health practitioners.

Climate change is increasing the risk of both too much water and too little water. Whether the challenge is flooding, drought, deteriorating source water quality or loss of supply, the public health impacts can be significant. For environmental health professionals, collaboration and partnership working will be key to tackling these challenges. The good news is that many mechanisms and partnerships such as the Water Health Partnership for the South West already exist and demonstrate how organisations can come together to share expertise, understand emerging risks and prepare for future challenges.

As climate change continues to affect both water quality and water availability, collaboration will become more important than ever. By working together, we will be better placed to strengthen resilience, protect public health and help ensure communities continue to have access to safe and sufficient drinking water for years to come.