Selaine Saxby, MP for North Devon, welcomes South West Water’s unveiling of their new water quality map, known as WaterFit Live, will share open information and help everyone in the South West have their say on how we all protect and improve beaches.
The WaterFit Live map (https://www.southwestwater.co.uk/environment/waterfit/waterfitlive/) is designed to share information about the region’s bathing beaches, location and performance of storm overflows and South West Water’s plans to improve water quality.
Selaine Saxby, MP for North Devon said:
“Here in North Devon we are lucky to have such a beautiful coastline, which millions of people come to visit every year. I welcome the release of WaterFit Live which will give everyone more confidence that the water in their area is clean. This will keep people visiting our stunning coasts and support our local businesses.
“Despite what we may be hearing or seeing in the media or social media our stretch of coastline has improved significantly over the years. However, we can continue to improve which is why I welcome as part of the Environment Act, the Water Services Regulation Authority (Ofwat) consulting on taking powers to enforce against water companies that do not link dividend payments to their environmental performance. This proposal is crucial to ensure better accountability on performance, and drive the outcomes that we all expect from our water companies.”
South West Water hope that sharing information about water quality at people’s favourite beaches will help customers, communities and visitors feel confident about the South West’s renowned beaches and the quality of the water. The new system forms part of the company’s commitment to share more information with customers on both environmental performance and investment plans at the beaches across South West’s 860 miles of coastline.
WaterFit Live will also share useful information about beaches helping to explain how the network and storm overflows work through user friendly, easy to understand explanations, animations and FAQ’s. It will highlight South West Water’s focus on maintaining the South West’s 100% bathing water quality standards.
Through ‘Your Beach, Your Say, Our Investment’ customers and communities will be able to share knowledge about their local beach and help South West Water prioritise their next round of investment from 2025. Selaine Saxby MP has welcomed the tool for customers and beach communities from North Devon to share their insight and encourages constituents to do so here.
Susan Davy, Group CEO Pennon, said:
“We want people to feel confident about the water quality at their favourite beach and to know we are serious about reducing the use of storm overflows. WaterFit Live is designed to share helpful information about bathing water quality, the improvements we are already making and future investments. The beaches in the South West belong to those who live in the region, are loved by those who visit the South West, and this is all about ensuring we share data, listen to the views of those who care, and work together to invest where it’s needed most.”
South West Water plans on expanding WaterFit Live so that it also covers river water quality later this year. There are currently no designated bathing rivers in the region, but the company is working on pilots for both the rivers Dart and Tavy to learn what it will take to achieve this.
Yesterday the Government backed new plans for the water regulator Ofwat to take action against water companies that pay out dividends to their shareholders despite failing to meet the required performance standards.
The changes have been made possible by the government’s Environment Act 2021 which gave Ofwat new powers to change water company licences without consent from water companies.
As such, Ofwat is now modifying licences to require companies to:
- Take account of environmental performance and customer delivery when deciding whether to pay dividends.
- Hold a strong credit rating and stop them paying dividends if their financial health is at risk.
If a company falls short, Ofwat will be able to take enforcement action.
These changes will improve the environmental performance and financial health of water companies, as well as providing greater transparency with customers and stakeholders.
