Isra-Mart srl : Defra accused of "paralysis" over delayed water efficiency plan

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Isra-Mart srl news:

Water white paper pushed back to autumn as new study highlights increasing risk of water shortages to investors
The government has been accused of "paralysis" after delaying the launch of a draft paper outlining how it will improve water efficiency.

Environment minister Richard Benyon confirmed earlier this week that the government's forthcoming water white paper is now expected to be published in the autumn, rather than this summer as initially planned.
The white paper will outline recommendations for tackling challenges facing the water industry, such as the effect of climate change on future water resources, waste water management and rising customer bills.

However, as announced by Chancellor George Osborne in the Budget last month, the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) yesterday launched a nine-week consultation aimed at combating high water bills in the south west of England, forcing back the launch date of the white paper.

A Defra spokesman told BusinessGreen that the white paper would now suffer "only a slight delay" because the results of the affordability consultation need to be analysed and fed into the broader white paper after it finishes in June.

But shadow Defra secretary Mary Creagh warned that the delay would cause uncertainty for businesses, and accused the government of "paralysing" its ministers.

"I'm really concerned about it ... because it adds uncertainty in to the mix," she told BusinessGreen. "It's part of a pattern of Defra not doing things and not meeting their business plan deadlines."

In related news, German development bank Deutsche Investitions und Entwicklungsgesellschaft (DEG) and WWF have developed a Water Risk Filter to identify water-related risks at an early point in the investment decision process.

To arrive at a risk evaluation for a specific company, the Water Risk Filter uses a large set of risk indicators based on publicly available datasets, which are then combined with specific information from a water risk questionnaire completed by a company.

A report released yesterday by DEG and WWF used the tool to show that the shortage of fresh water is quickly becoming a major business growth risk, which investors need to take into account.

Of 300 companies studied, 191 showed high potential business risks related to fresh water, with agribusiness at particular risk.

Bruno Wenn, chairman of the board of management at DEG, urged other financiers to collaborate on the project.

"We would like to invite other financial institutions to work with us and WWF to further refine the water risk filter tool, to make it accessible to other institutions and to engage with clients on the ground to adapt to the fundamental challenges of climate and water related risks that we are facing today," he said.