Environmental regulation of groundwater abstraction for dewatering works

The abstraction of groundwater for beneficial use or supply in England and Wales is restricted by law. The relevant legislation is currently the Water Resources Act 1991, but the Government has recently announced that new legislation is forthcoming. This paper outlines the licensing system currently in place and goes on to explain the proposed changes to legislation controlling dewatering works. It emphasises that in future it will be essential to keep the Environment Agency suitably informed of groundwater abstractions for whatever purpose and to comply with the new regulations, as failure to do so may well result in prosecution.