Policy paper

Reservoir safety reform programme

Published 9 April 2025

Applies to England and Wales

Reservoirs play a vital role in safeguarding our water supply by storing water that falls in the wetter part of the year. This makes sure there is continuity of supply when it is dry.

Reservoir safety is about ensuring the physical structure of a reservoir, its dams and embankments are safe. In England, reservoir safety legislation applies on “large raised reservoirs” which can store more than 25,000 meters cubed (m³) of water above ground level. In Wales, this applies to reservoirs storing more than 10,000m³. 

As of March 2025, there are 2,146 such reservoirs in England. Around 2.6 million people are potentially at risk from reservoir dams failing and causing flooding which could endanger life.

1. Programme vision and aims

Our vision is to create a safety regime for reservoir dams in England and Wales which protects our communities. We will do this by increasing our resilience to climate change – today, tomorrow and the future.

2. Roles and responsibilities

Responsibility for reservoir safety regulation is divided between 3 main groups. These are:   

• reservoir owners and operators –  who are responsible for the safety of their reservoirs and must appoint engineers from the reservoir panels of engineers  to inspect their reservoirs and they must act on the engineer’s recommendations
• reservoir panel engineers – who are appointed to supervise and inspect reservoir construction and operation  
• regulators - the Environment Agency manages and enforces reservoir safety regulation in England, while Natural Resources Wales does this in Wales

3. The need for reform

We have an excellent reservoir safety record. However, there are now several reasons to re-evaluate how we regulate reservoir safety. These include: 

• the Toddbrook incident and the Independent Reservoir Safety Review
• climate change - which is increasing the pressures on reservoir infrastructure and demand for reservoirs and water resources
• the need to update the Reservoirs Act 1975 to a more, proportionate flexible regime – this is in line with safety management practices in other sectors and countries
• concerns about the limited numbers of reservoir engineers and the increasing demand for specialist engineers in future

4. Areas for reform

We will work with stakeholders to help shape our approach and achieve the following reforms:

• strengthening the roles and responsibilities for reservoir owners, operators, engineers, and the regulators
• improving the safety practice and culture, through a programme of continuous development of skills, capacity and training across the reservoir community
• modernising legislation and safety management practice to make sure we have a robust and proportionate safety regime that is fit for the future

4.1 Creating a more modern approach to hazard management

Hazard classification and risk assessment

We have commissioned work to develop a new hazard classification. This will be more representative of the risk from reservoir failure and the governance required for it to operate safely.  This will support a modern safety regime for reservoir safety in England. 

The new approach will:

• include a continuous safety improvement culture, where risks are managed on an ‘as low as reasonably practical’ (ALARP) basis at all times
• replace the current ‘high-risk’ or ‘not high-risk’ classification in the Reservoirs Act 1975
• enable a better risk based and proportionate approach to regulation of reservoirs for public safety

We will develop options for the new classification and safety management system that are suitable for both countries. This will involve:

• Defra
• Environment Agency
• Welsh Government
• Natural Resources Wales

This reform was identified in recommendations 1, 10, 3, 4, 5 and 11 of the Independent Reservoir Safety Review.

Small raised reservoirs

Small raised reservoirs are any reservoirs that have a volume of between 10,000m³ and 25,000m³. 

The Reservoirs Act 1975 was amended by Schedule 4 of the Flood and Water Management Act 2010 to enable these reservoirs to be brought into regulation. However, this change has not yet been brought into force in England. The proposed new hazard classification works for both small and large raised reservoirs.

We will tailor the safety management practices required to reflect the different hazard classes. This will enable a more proportionate approach to regulating smaller reservoirs.

New reporting system for recording incidents

We are working with the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) to create a website to share case studies of incidents from England and Wales. This will be called the reservoir incident knowledge base and will replace our annual report on incidents from 2025. 

This reform was identified in recommendation 9 of the Independent Reservoir Safety Review.

4.2 Improving the supply and capacity of reservoir safety engineers

Reservoir engineers’ roles

We will adjust and clarify the role and responsibilities of supervising and inspecting engineers, along with that of engineer panels. This will: 

• support achieving best practice 
• reflect the new hazard classification system 
• better support and enable skills development and career progression for engineers 

This reform was suggested in recommendations 5, 6 and 8 of the Independent Reservoir Safety Review.

Future supply of reservoir engineers

The aim is to improve the sustainability of reservoir engineering as a profession, with robust training and employing a more diverse group of people. We need to have a functioning commercial market with sufficient panel engineers available to inspect all types of reservoirs. This will include encouraging collaboration between small organisations where they can jointly procure reservoir safety engineer services for all of their assets. 

This reform was suggested in the ICE review and recommendations 7 and 9 of the Independent Reservoir Safety Review.

4.3 Updating the approach to regulation and enforcement

Modernising the legal framework

We are considering the options for modernising the legal framework. Options include:

• new primary legislation to replace the Reservoirs Act 1975
• retaining the Act and amending it
• using existing powers to bring reservoir safety within the environmental permitting regime

We have not made a final decision yet. However, bringing reservoir safety regulation into environmental permitting is currently the preferred approach.

The The Environmental Permitting (England and Wales) Regulations 2016 provide a modern regulatory framework for safety regimes for other sectors and industries. We could apply this to reservoir safety.

It has a hierarchy of permitting that includes:

• exemptions
• standard permits
• bespoke permits

We could apply these to the different hazard classes to deliver a more proportionate approach. 

If we use environmental permitting, the reforms can be introduced through regulations rather than needing a new bill in Parliament. This means we could make the changes on a more predictable timescale. 

Environmental permitting will not change the reforms we need to make following the Independent Reservoir Safety Review. However, it would provide a practical way of modernising the reservoir safety regime. Over the coming months, there will be opportunities to explore and express views on this approach.

These will include:

• meetings of relevant stakeholder groups
• a written consultation in autumn 2025

This reform was suggested in recommendations 2 and 12 of the Independent Reservoir Safety Review.

Role of the regulator

This reform will introduce a stronger regulatory role for the regulators (the Environment Agency and Natural Resources Wales) in assessing and challenging engineer’s reports.

The regulators will be able to:

• provide assurance
• visit reservoirs to carry out spot-checking of owners’ activities

The degree of regulatory effort involved should be proportionate to the risks involved. 

This reform was suggested in recommendations 2, 11 and 12 of the Independent Reservoir Safety Review. 

Charging scheme

We will consult on and develop a proportionate charging scheme for the Environment Agency’s reservoir regulation tasks. This will be similar to other regulated sectors where more of the costs of regulation are paid by the regulated sectors rather than taxpayers. Charges for regulatory activity should consider the differences in the risks posed and hence the level of regulatory activity required. 

This reform was suggested in recommendations 2 and 12 of the Independent Reservoir Safety Review. 

Civil sanctions

The enforcement authority has no powers to issue civil sanctions to enforce the existing range of reservoir safety offences. In most cases the only options are:

• enforcement notice
• formal caution
• criminal prosecution

These may be disproportionate and burdensome to administer. The aim is to develop and consult on a range of civil sanction options, for example variable:

• monetary penalties
• enforcement undertakings

Different types of civil sanctions will be appropriate depending on the type of owner, reservoir, and offence. 

This reform was suggested in recommendation 12 of the Independent Reservoir Safety Review. 

Records, registers and management plans

We are currently reviewing recommended changes to the management arrangements for reservoir safety. This includes improvements to systems that ensure operation, maintenance, monitoring and surveillance are being carried out effectively. The review is also looking to update the existing record and information keeping requirements. This will:

• streamline data management practices
• improve efficiency and effectiveness

Reservoir safety management plan reforms are closely linked to the hazard classification proposals. The complexity of the system and level of reservoir engineer involvement is likely to be in proportion to the risk posed by the reservoir.  

This reform was suggested in recommendations 3 and 4 of the Independent Reservoir Safety Review.

5. Devolved administrations

On 4 November 2024, the Deputy First Minister for Wales confirmed the Welsh Government’s intention to join the reservoir safety reform programme. They plan to implement the reforms across Wales. The intention is outlined in a ministerial statement.

You can find out more about the reservoir safety reform programme in Wales on their information page.

The devolved administrations for Scotland and Northern Ireland are responsible for any reforms in their countries. We are working closely with all the devolved administrations to share knowledge. This will help make sure there is a coherent approach to reservoir regulation across the UK.  

6. Working with other groups

We are engaging regularly with industry and professional bodies. These include:

• Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE)
• National Farmers Union (NFU)
• Major Reservoir Owners Group (MROG)

We encourage you to share your views with your representative body so that they can represent your interests in shaping the reforms. 

7. Contact us

Email us at RSR_Programme@environment-agency.gov.uk to get in touch or visit our RSR Programme engagement page for more information.