Integrated Water Management Planning – An opportunity for transformative change?

Last year I wrote a post on the numerous challenges that we face in the water management area, including the impact of climate change, increasing water quality issues, the impacts of flooding and a significant skills capacity and capability issue. There was a consensus that we needed to approach things differently or we would fail to address the issues.

At CIWEMs Urban Drainage Group (UDG) annual conference last year WRc led a workshop to discuss Integrated Water Management Planning (IWMP), supported by Hemdean Consulting, Stantec and Jacobs that asked the following questions:-

• What planning do we currently do, what does it integrate with and on what timeline?
• What are all the gaps in the current planning landscape and what should we prioritise?
• Based on the initial principles proposed for an Integrated Water Management Plan (IWMP) framework and the lessons learned from the IWMP for Greater Manchester, what should the structure of a new IWMP framework be?

From the workshop output it was evident that the participants believed that there was a lot of excellent work being done in the various plans being delivered (albeit focused mainly on DWMPs as it was an urban drainage conference). There was an agreement that planning was fragmented and not ‘joined up’ with other stakeholders planning for water, wastewater and drainage and there were still missed opportunities. However, there was also a consensus that there was a need for improvements in the planning process. It was suggested there was a need for enhanced integration, especially on budgetary and planning delivery timelines, improved collaboration and communication between all the multiple stakeholders and improved data management and data sharing. When we reviewed the initial principles proposed for a new IWMP framework, correlated them with the lessons learned from the Greater Manchester IWMP, and finally considered the responses from the workshop's final question, we identified several key themes that could serve as important building blocks and core principles for a new IWMP framework.

A critical aspect that has been highlighted is the need for decisive leadership, with a key figure able to drive forward the initiative, and maintain momentum, which was seen as equally important.

As well as the governance principles required, it was also considered critical to have a clear statement of ownership and accountability and maintain a continuous cyclic monitoring program with feedback to ensure the framework and plans are dynamic.

Data and information were also considered critical, with a need for improvements in standardisation of inputs. Data needs to be more accessible, with better sharing across relevant stakeholders, with perhaps a common sharing platform created.

There was a consensus that the outcomes need to focus on the environment, economy and people, with community seen as important. Early engagement with all stakeholders, especially communities is valuable for ensuring buy in and delivering outputs that are accepted.

In addition to the original outcomes there must be a clear focus on improving the alignment of planning timelines and budgets to facilitate the collaboration needed to deliver.

There are other great examples of IWMP delivery, including the Subregional Integrated Water Management Strategy (SIWMS) for the Lower Lea, delivered as a pilot study for the Greater London Authority (GLA). Again, there are common themes with recommendations covering water quantity, water quality, water stress and planning & governance. Specifically, there are recommendations on delivering more ambitious Sustainable Urban Drainage programmes and implementing and enforcing Schedule 3 of the Flood and Water Management Act (2010).

CIWEM has regularly tackled the subject of IWM, and launched ‘Enabling Water Smart Communities,’ an initiative which aims to rethink whole-life water stewardship. The recent release of CIWEMs ‘A Fresh Water Future,’ also has several key recommendations on how to change the way we plan for water, but with a clear consensus from those involved in the consultation that change is needed now. So, although there are some great examples, why aren’t we doing more?

With the general election now just around the corner there is a real opportunity for post-election transformative change in the way we plan and deliver for water. WRc are keen to engage with all water community stakeholders to further define the principles for an IWMP framework, understanding the real ‘hurdles’ and potential ‘brick walls’ in delivery and support the move for change.

If you would like to learn more about our thoughts on integrated water planning or be a part of the discussion, then please click here to contact our Head of Wastewater Infrastructure Paul Grabham, our Principal Consultant Nick Orman or our Senior Consultant Amy Jones.