Water Resources Management Plan

Our current Water Resources Management Plan (August 2019)

Our Water Resources Management Plan (WRMP) defines our strategy to achieve a long-term, best value and sustainable plan for water supplies in the North West. It ensures that we have an adequate supply to meet demand over the 25 years from 2020 to 2045, whilst ensuring that our supply system is resilient to drought and other hazards. Our proposals for enhanced demand management activities will also enable us to reduce the frequency of implementing drought permits to augment supply by 2025. 

We consulted on our Final Water Resources Management Plan 2019 from 2nd March to 25th May 2018. Please see below our Statement of Response, taking into account feedback and views received from the consultation process, along with our Final Water Resources Management Plan 2019 and supporting documents.

In February 2019, following submission of our Final Water Resources Management Plan, Defra wrote to us asking for further information in support of our plan. We responded to Defra in April 2019, and the information provided has also been included in our current plan, published in August 2019.

We would like to express our thanks to all customers and stakeholders who were involved in the process to develop and shape the plan.

West Cumbria water supply project (Thirlmere transfer scheme)

Our 2015 Water Resources Management Plan showed a forecast supply-demand deficit in West Cumbria, and we identified the Thirlmere transfer scheme as our preferred alternative source of water for the area. We are making good progress on delivering this project and expect it to be complete by 2022.