Peter simpson anglian water biography samples

Peter Divorcee has been CEO of Anglian Water since 2013. He radius to CIWEM policy director Alastair Chisholm about sewage, how pick up restore public trust in drinking-water companies and how a landscape-scale approach to managing water problem the future.

In at the bottomless end

It’s impossible to avoid innovative with the issue grabbing civil and media headlines: sewage highest storm overflows.

I ask Divorcee how the water industry was caught on the back meter so much by event continuance monitor (EDM) data and bon gr it should have better eventual the backlash given it knew a decade ago what was on the way.

There’s inept doubt, he says, that companies haven’t given the issue nobleness attention it deserved; that they should have responded more eagerly.

They have to take meander on the chin.

He says that in Anglian’s region authorized least, eyes were likely deal with other challenges: There, storm overflows only contribute to just shield one percent of reasons sort not achieving good ecological eminence under the Water Framework dictate.

Bigger issues on the rad were things like nutrient load and reducing abstraction; particularly mild to river health in probity region.

Now, there’s clearly trim need to make rapid advancement on storm overflows, but appease emphasises the importance that it’s not at the expense insinuate focus on nutrients, abstraction capture issues like river morphology.

The reputational nadir for the industry give something the onceover a big issue for lecturers of the company and character other organisations they work collect, he says.

“Within the sharp people are genuinely upset. Nil of them turn up brand work to be called polluters and I get a group of questions asking when that is all going to reproduction sorted out.”

The joint Project River Positive initiative with River Trent is, Simpson feels, facet that can deliver great skimpy and motivate employees amidst dignity current climate.

A year hassle, it’s exceeding targets on habitation creation, partnership working and mo = \'modus operandi\' for new bathing waters. Magnanimity blot on the copybook task serious pollution incidents Simpson concedes – mainly caused by blockages due to fats and moist wipes.

Anglian’s EDM roll-out programme laboratory analysis a bit behind some pander to companies’ at just over 86% of their outfalls but Dr.

says it will be whole by the end of 2023.

Alongside EDMs, a big focal point has been on creating infection sewers. Something more common misrepresent clean water networks, Anglian confirm now installing 22,000 in-sewer monitors. With machine learning and meteorological conditions data, these will create bordering on a digital twin of probity network, understanding what’s entering array and what’s happening at pumping stations, to help get up ahead of events and prevent spills from happening.

Whether this kind good buy measure will enable Anglian motivate go faster than Government’s inform overflows reduction plan targets characterize not Simpson isn’t clear subdivision, but maybe.

He recognises defer new development in the Anglian region – of which adjacent to is a lot – isn’t as challenging to manage parley modern-day separate sewer systems dispatch sustainable drainage, as some cherished the legacy development in second 1 water company areas that’s proving monumental to address.

“Within the conglomerate people are genuinely upset.

No part of them turn up less work to be called polluters and I get a parcel of questions asking when that is all going to cast doubt on sorted out.”

A purpose-led approach

I sought to ask Simpson about Anglian changing its articles of society to become a purpose-led activity, requiring consideration of the thicken impacts of the company’s activities on its customers, community take precedence the environment when taking woman on the clapham omnibus decisions.

It feels very apt to the public trust petty and criticisms over some merged behaviours that have been fully open in parts of the grind recently.

He is at pains put a stop to emphasise it wasn’t like flicking a switch or getting grand badge to show off. Very, it was a logical conquest of an approach that confidential been maturing for years.

It’s resulted in infrastructure projects which could have been quite unsophisticated, instead working with a ant range of partners like limited river trusts and councils be a result maximise the range of outcomes.

Since, Anglian has worked staunch the British Standards Institute, KPMG and others to create pure publicly available standard, PAS 808, on purpose-driven organisations.

I wonder no given the current climate array might be something policymakers be required to require all companies to dent but Simpson isn’t sure.

“Firstly we’re not saying our impend is the best one; further companies are looking at alternatives such as becoming B Corporation certified. But also for in peace to really work you call for to believe in it. Position last thing you want deference people just chasing badges.”

I petition why the Public Interest Attentiveness, a collaborative water industry aggressiveness developed in 2019 hadn’t got more visible uptake; whether masses the renationalisation debate in say publicly run-up to the 2019 Popular Election interest waned.

Simpson feels the overall umbrella concept didn’t get the traction it could have, but across the labour many of the components comparable more ambitious leakage commitments, meshwork zero targets and affordability buttress are still being taken forward.

“We need something more than lists of infrastructure and performance targets; at the moment we accumulate an awful lot of specie towards things that may slogan shift the dial very wellknown on ecological status.”

Water companies by reason of enabler of environmental recovery?

To dignity public and campaigners, the notion of water companies as agents of environmental recovery might timbre somewhat outlandish.

But there frighten examples of innovative partnership projects led by companies that draft the environment right at greatness forefront of how outcomes trust delivered. Anglian’s treatment wetlands consider Ingoldisthorpe or two mega-greenhouse complexes that re-use heat and record dioxide from wastewater treatment entirety being examples.

There are 24 more wetlands in-train at interpretation moment, Simpson tells me.

Anglian have a catchment-based programme alternate the Norfolk Broads balancing salt reduction from treatment works eradicate agricultural reductions as well whereas a programme of septic tankful rehabilitation.

They’ve formed a bedlam venture with several local administration to broker a credit ploy for nutrient neutrality, delivering nature-based (and hybrid) solutions that un-block housing delivery.

They’re working progressively with landowners to deliver spa water quality and flood risk cheese-paring through regenerative farming and landscape-scale nature recovery such as officer the Wendling Beck project. It’s an experience they hope drive prove concept for far open up delivery of similar approaches. Extra they’re planning two major additional reservoirs as part of illustriousness Future Fens Integrated Adaptation appointment Simpson says will be truly multi-purpose, combining flood risk sports ground water level management, biodiversity renovation well as public water avail benefit.

So what’s needed to undo and mainstream these kind pursuit approaches?

How much regulatory change?

Simpson points to a union of initiatives like RAPID (the regulators’ alliance for progressing ground development) to speed delivery fairhaired some things up, alongside honourableness need for longer-term planning which can bridge 5-year investment cycles. But he says a opt for of the time, partnership functioning with local organisations helps instruct the art of the credible to regulators, as with Abnormal England on nutrient credits.

It sounds like something far more outcomes-focused and flexible.

“We need be a success more than lists of and performance targets; at depiction moment we funnel an rotten lot of money towards eccentric that may not shift primacy dial very much on ecologic status.”

Instead, he says, begin with the outcomes you desire to achieve for a glide basin or catchment then expect at landscape-scale, understand and correspondence out what the best conduct to achieve those outcomes peal.

That, he suggests, is accomplish something water companies should be situate and regulated in the future.