What does DEFRA’s water abstraction crackdown mean for industry and the environment?

DEFRA’s softly-softly approach to reforming its system of abstractions from rivers and groundwater has brought comfort to industry and frustration to environmental NGOs in equal measure.

Abstraction licences allow the holder to take water from rivers and aquifers for public water supply, industry and farming and it is widely agreed that the system is in need of a radical overhaul to protect supplies and to prevent over-abstraction damaging the environment.