Today’s newsletter focuses on Britain’s hot, stinking water mess — from water shortages to sewage problems.

 

The bed of Woodhead Reservoir partially revealed by a falling water level, near Glossop, northern England in May. Photographer: Oli Scarff/AFP/Getty Images

 

The messy details

By Joe Wertz and Priscila Azevedo Rocha While England is often associated with rain, the country has managed to end up with short supply of water thanks in part to climate change. The problem was on full display this week: Reservoir levels across England fell far below the norm during the driest spring in more than a century. Reservoirs were 77% full at the end of May compared with the long-term average of 93%, the UK’s Environment Agency said. This spring was the UK’s sunniest and warmest on record, and England’s driest March-May period since 1893, the agency said. While wetter conditions have since provided some relief, it’s unlikely to plug the deficit as extreme heat and more dry weather looms.

The hot, dry spring has been fueled by an unusual rise in high-pressure patterns that scientists say have amplified long-term global warming. The news comes at time when water mismanagement was already grabbing headlines across Britain.  Things have been particularly bad at Thames Water, which supplies about a quarter of the UK population, and has been on a long downward financial slope. It came close to running out of money several times before finally unlocking an emergency loan in March. There was hope for a turnaround when alternative asset manager KKR & Co. made a bid to invest £4 billion ($5.4 billion) in Thames Water earlier this year. Only this week the US infrastructure giant realized there was little upside to a deal and withdrew its offer, according to people familiar with the deliberations. Read More: KKR Quit Thames Bid After It Saw Little Upside to a Rescue The crisis follows decades of poor regulatory oversight that allowed water company owners to pay themselves billions of pounds in dividends instead of using the money to maintain the infrastructure.  Meanwhile, regulator Ofwat flexed new powers today when it banned six water companies from paying bonuses to senior executives who haven’t done enough to tackle pollution.   Water companies are facing widespread public anger over sewage leaks into rivers and lakes throughout Britain. Photographer: Carl Court/Getty Images   Ofwat’s authority to stop “unjustified” payments for poor environmental and customer performance is part of new legislation that comes into come into force today. Bosses at Thames Water, Yorkshire Water, Anglian Water, Wessex Water, United Utilities and Southern Water are not permitted to receive bonuses with immediate effect, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said.  Stopping bonuses is meant to address the public perception that company bosses are rewarded even if a firm is pumping waste into waterways illegally. Public anger has been further fueled by bill increases of as much as 47% in April while water companies have awarded over £112 million in bonuses and incentives over the last decade, according to government figures. --With assistance from Claire Ruckin and Giulia Morpurgo