Water reforms

What is happening? 

In January 2026 the UK Government published a Water White Paper. The White Paper is designed to overhaul our water system. It takes forward the recommendations of the Independent Water Commission and sets out reforms that will roll out over the next few years, including through a Water Reform Bill.  

This is a real opportunity to fix long-standing problems in how our water system works as right now, sewage, pollution, and chemicals are harming our waters. Wildlife is suffering and communities are at risk.

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What do we want to see from these reforms? 

The water we depend on as a society depends on healthy freshwater ecosystems. But those ecosystems are in a desperate state. We can't fix water unless we fix nature. That’s why it’s essential that nature restoration is at the heart of the water reforms.  

We have joined forces with other environmental groups to support Wildlife & Countryside Link’s ‘Clean Water Now’ campaign. We are backing three shared priorities, which bring together the campaign’s core demands and the closely aligned asks of The Wildlife Trusts. 

Together, we are calling for water reforms that will:  

• Increase nature-rich land alongside waterways to restore river corridors to their natural form and to tackle pollution. This can be achieved by regional targets for Wilder Riverbanks and by adopting the recommendations of the Making Space for Water coalition. 
   
• Reduce all forms of water pollution, including from chemicals and agriculture. Reforms to environmental permitting to better control pollution from intensive livestock farms will help to achieve this.  
   
• Plan better for water, with all sectors which impact the water system working together to bring freshwaters back to health. This must include cross-sector action to preserve threatened habitats like chalk streams and the use of fines from polluters to restore rivers at catchment scale. 

You can help make these reforms happen

We've joined with our friends to call on MPs to finally clean up our rivers, lakes and seas. Now we need your help. 

You can use our simple form to email your MP and demand a law that stops polluters, fixes what's broken and delivers clean water - now. 

Together, we can fix nature. 

Email your MP using our simple action

Read our briefings

These briefings set out our priorities for freshwater recovery, which form the basis for our ongoing work to influence the Government’s water reforms. 

The case for Wilder Riverbank targets 

The case for environmental permitting reform  

A vision for water