WATERSHED Investigations

South East Water fined £22.5m for ‘repeated supply failures’ in Kent and Sussex Regulator says failures that hit nearly 300,000 customers made worse by utility’s failure to maintain efficient supply system

South East Water has been warned repeatedly by regulators, over a period of 4 years, that it was at risk of supply failure & needed to act to protect water resources in order to keep the taps on.

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www.theguardian.com/business/202...

ITV News 'Water firms across South repeatedly warned by regulators about supply risks, new documents show' picture of water tanker, subtitled 'South East Water, one of the companies which was warned, has used tablets to address supply shortages in Kent'. Credit: ITV News Meridian

In January, ITV News reported on documents obtained by Watershed Investigations showing repeated warnings to the water company to act to prevent the sort of water outage that occurred this winter:

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Revealed: Europe’s water reserves drying up due to climate breakdown Exclusive: UCL scientists find large swathes of southern Europe are drying up, with ‘far-reaching’ implications

As we've previously reported, climate change is driving shifts in groundwater levels even in rainy England, with many parts of the South & East likely to become increasingly dry, & some areas already water-stressed:

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Map of UK, part of Greenland, Europe, Africa, Antarctica and parts of Asia and Middle East showing which regions are growing wetter, which drier around the world.

Climate change is making some parts of the world drier, others wetter, driving water stress, water bankruptcy, water-related conflict & migration around the world. You can explore how your region is affected using our Water Security Atlas:

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A major housing battle is taking place on the edge of Yosemite National Park An unusual battle over new housing is emerging on the western edge of Yosemite National Park, in an area zoned for forest.

I am always skeptical about people opposing new housing next to existing housing, but when it's happening along the edge of Yosemite National Park you have to scratch your head at least a little bit: www.sfchronicle.com/california/a... via @kurtisalexander.bsky.social

Reprieve for India as US eases sanctions on Russian oil sales New Delhi to benefit from 30-day waiver as energy prices soar

Reprieve for India as US eases sanctions on Russian oil sales ft.trib.al/AqSpZED

South East Water faces £22m fine for repeated supply failures

South East Water faces £22m fine for repeated supply failures

This is a life and death story for the UK – so why is it being brushed under the carpet? The news that healthy life expectancy is in decline in Britain exposes a serious truth about the state we’re in, says Guardian columnist Aditya Chakrabortty

This is a life and death story for the UK – so why is it being brushed under the carpet?

Sea levels are higher than thought – putting millions more are at risk A new study highlights a 'methodological blind spot' in the way sea level rise is measured.

A new study highlights a 'methodological blind spot' in the way sea level rise is measured.

Natural Resources Wales consult the public on new forest resource plans Natural Resources Wales (NRW) is inviting the public to share their views on the draft Forest Resource Plan (FRP) for Gwydyr South Forest. The draft documents prepared are available to view on NRW’s C...

Natural Resources Wales (NRW) is inviting the public to share their views on the draft Forest Resource Plan (FRP) for Gwydyr South Forest

How UK cuts to climate finance could bankrupt ecosystems at home – and abroad In this week’s newsletter: From nature projects to biodiversity funds, key programmes will suffer as the UK aims to lower its international climate finance commitments by billions

How UK cuts to climate finance could bankrupt ecosystems at home – and abroad

Mass stranding of whales on Scottish beach caused by loyalty to their pod, report finds The 55 pilot whales, which had to be euthanised, had been following a female having a difficult birth, scientists believe The mass stranding and death of 55 whales on the Isle of Lewis in 2023 was caused by the mammals’ loyalty to their pod, a report has concluded. It had been thought that the unusually large incident on Tràigh Mhòr beach, Tolsta, could have been caused by trauma, disease or acoustic disturbance from military or industrially generated noise. Continue reading...

Mass stranding of whales on Scottish beach caused by loyalty to their pod, report finds

Oil on track for biggest weekly gain in four years, as strait of Hormuz traffic grinds to a halt – business live Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial news * Iran war live updates: US temporarily lets India buy Russian oil amid energy fears; Israeli military launches strikes on Beirut Good morning, and welcome to our rolling coverage of business, the financial markets and the world economy. The oil price is on track for its biggest monthly gain in four years, fuelling fears of an inflation spike that will reignite the cost of living crisis and hurt growth around the globe. 7am GMT: Halifax house price index for February 1.30pm GMT: US non farm payrolls employment data for February 1.30pm GMT: US retail sales report for January Continue reading...

Oil on track for biggest weekly gain in four years, as strait of Hormuz traffic grinds to a halt – business live

Tackling air pollution should be part of government work to cut cancer rates, scientists say New European Code Against Cancer calls on politicians to phase out use of fossil fuels in homes

Tackling air pollution should be part of government work to cut cancer rates, scientists say

The pressure is rightfully building against woodburners

#AirPollution

www.theguardian.com/environment/...

Small Grants, big impact 🌍

With GEO Mountains support, the REACH project delivered a comprehensive regional assessment of rock & ice avalanche risk to hydropower in High Mountain Asia 🏔️⚡

Open data + actionable science for safer infrastructure in #OurChangingMountains.

📖 Read more: buff.ly/A5Oueo2

Scottish Forestry acted unlawfully in development that posed risk to butterflies The northern brown argus butterfly was on the government agency's own biodiversity list

Scottish Forestry acted unlawfully in development that posed risk to butterflies...

news.stv.tv/scotland/sco...

South West Water admits criminal offence over Devon parasite outbreak Firm admits supplying water unfit for human consumption after nearly 150 people fell ill

South West Water admits criminal offence over Devon parasite outbreak.

Water unfit for human consumption, 150 people fell ill.

SWW already has nearly 200 criminal convictions. Licence not cancelled, no exec prosecuted, record high customer bills, sewage dumped in rivers.

Privatisation is a scam.

UK must double down on renewables as wars drive up energy costs, experts say Fossil fuel price surge after US-Israeli attacks on Iran prompts calls to end dependence on ‘volatile’ energy source

UK must double down on renewables as wars drive up energy costs, experts say

UK slashes climate aid programmes for developing countries Exclusive: Schemes worth hundreds of millions of pounds to protect biodiversity and oceans likely to be substantially reduced

UK climate programmes worth hundreds of millions of pounds have been in effect axed due to budget cuts, while others have been significantly reduced in scope, the Guardian reveals.

www.theguardian.com/environment/...

The sea is higher than we thought and millions more are at risk, study finds A new study in the journal Nature says most sea level rise research may have underestimated coastal water heights by an average of 1 foot or about 30 centimeters.

“You have a lot of people here for whom the risk of extreme flooding is much higher than people thought’' - @alevermann.bsky.social comments on a new study showing that baseline calculations for coastal water levels have been underestimated in a majority of studies.
apnews.com/article/sea-...

This week, EU lawmakers will resume discussions on whether to censor how to talk about plant-based food... we’d rather they stop spreading confusion.

There’s #NoConfusion.
#YesVeggieBurger

Osmosis, the other other renewable energy I’ve been writing about renewable energy for twenty years, and just this week discovered that there’s a whole other kind that I didn’t know about. This is the climate nerd equival…

Osmosis, the other other renewable energy – The Earthbound Report earthbound.report/2026/03/05/o...

China's five-year plan: doubling down on green but walking back emission targets China’s five-year plan for 2026-2030 is out. The plan is highly supportive of clean energy across the board, but still refrains from setting strong measurable targets for reducing emissions or fossil ...

China's five year plan for 2026-2030 is out - what are the implications for energy and emissions? Here are my observations.
www.linkedin.com/pulse/chinas...

UK must double down on renewables as wars drive up energy costs, experts say Fossil fuel price surge after US-Israeli attacks on Iran prompts calls to end dependence on ‘volatile’ energy source

“The UK’s failure to [pivot to homegrown clean energy] has left people on ordinary incomes paying the price.”

Europe's strategy worsened the last energy shock. Now, European leaders support a war that may cause the next one.

Our briefing in @theguardian.com 👇
www.theguardian.com/environment/...

Worth noting that despite frothing at the mouth of various right-wing media outlets in UK, the decision by Ed Miliband to go ahead with over 8GW of offshore wind in the recent renewables auction now looks a sensible bet

One of few ways UK can reduce economic risk from instability in Middle East

Dirty water, death and decline: the inside story of a privatisation scandal There is no end in sight to the pollution caused by a ‘broken’ system. Experts say it could even be getting worse

“Prof Pedro Arrojo-Agudo, UN Special Rapporteur on the human right to clean water, has singled out the English system for criticism, saying water should be managed as a publicly owned service, rather than run by private companies set up to benefit shareholders.”
www.theguardian.com/news/ng-inte...

make that £2.2 billion and the water companies might take notice; anything less, it's just the cost of doing business (badly)

Promising biodiversity recovery in the Yangtze River Nature Reviews Biodiversity, Published online: 03 March 2026; doi:10.1038/s44358-026-00145-1Promising biodiversity recovery in the Yangtze River

New online! Promising biodiversity recovery in the Yangtze River

Grid investment is rising fast. BloombergNEF reports record spending in 2025 of 470 to 483 billion US dollars, up 17 percent on 2024. That is the second year of double digit growth.

This reflects structural change: more renewables, electrified transport & heating + rising demand from data centres.

South East Water faces £22m fine for supply failures The firm was unable to cope during high demand, Ofwat says, leading to

“South East Water is facing a £22m fine by the industry regulator for "multiple supply disruptions" between 2020 and 2023 which caused residents in Kent and Sussex "immense stress and anxiety".”

www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...