National statistics

21. Surface water status

Updated 3 May 2024

Applies to England

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This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/england-biodiversity-indicators/21-surface-water-status

Data last updated: November 2023

Latest data available: 2019 (cycle 2)

Introduction

The EU Water Framework Directive (WFD) underpins an important mechanism for assessing and managing the water environment, through a 6-yearly cycle of river basin management planning and implementing measures to protect and improve the water environment. The Water Environment (Water Framework Directive) (England and Wales) 2017 Regulations transposed WFD into law in England and Wales. Similar regulations transposed WFD in Scotland and Northern Ireland, respectively. All these regulations were retained in UK law after EU Exit via the EU Withdrawal Act 2018. The Environment Agency continues to classify and report water body status under the 2017 regulations. For ease of reference this legislation is referred to as the WFD throughout this document.

The next comprehensive update of classifications in all water bodies, as required in the WFD, will be in 2025. Monitoring will continue to be prioritised in areas where new information is required to enable improvements.

The indicator shows the percentage of English water bodies in each status classification. Around 5,000 water bodies were assessed in each year of the indicator: including rivers, canals, lakes, estuaries and coastal waters. For a broader view of the condition of the water environment, see Indicator B3 in the Outcome Indicator Framework for the 25 Year Environment Plan: 2023 update.

Type of indicator

State indicator

Assessment of change in status of surface water bodies in England

In previous versions of this indicator an assessment was included but this has been removed to improve the robustness and clarity of this indicator. Due to the change in methodology in 2015 there is insufficient data to make long or short term assessments based on comparable data.

Surface water status

Trend description for Figure 21.1

In 2019, the most recent full set of classification results, 16% of surface water bodies assessed under the Water Framework Directive (WFD) were in high or good ecological status.

In 2015, England adopted the new monitoring and classification standards in preparation for cycle 2 river basin management plans. Figure 21.1 shows the data for both cycle 1 and cycle 2 in 2015 but these are not comparable due to the change in methodology. In 2015, for cycle 2, 20% of surface water bodies assessed under the WFD were in high or good ecological status.

Figure 21.1: Status classifications of surface water bodies in England under the Water Framework Directive, 2009 to 2019.

Download the data for Figure 21.1 in ods format

Source: Environment Agency

Notes about Figure 21.1:

  • based on the numbers of surface water bodies classified under the Water Framework Directive (WFD) in England. These include rivers, canals, lakes, estuaries and coastal water bodies, but exclude sites of special scientific interest (SSSI) ditches and surface water transfers
  • water bodies that are heavily modified or artificial (HMAWBs) are included in this indicator alongside natural water bodies. HMAWBs are classified as good, moderate, poor or bad ‘ecological potential’. Results have been combined; for example, the number of water bodies with a good status classification has been added to the number of HMAWBs with good ecological potential
  • the results published each year until 2016 relate to data reported in that year; data reported in a given year relate to data collected over the previous year. In 2016, the Environment Agency moved to a triennial reporting system. The most recent classification was in 2019
  • the percentage of water bodies in each status classification has been calculated based on the total number of water bodies assessed in each year
  • the total number of assessments varies slightly from year to year: in 2009, 5,805 water bodies were assessed; in 2010, 5,739 were assessed; in 2011, 5,760; in 2012, 5,692; in 2013, 5,735; in 2014, 5,769; in 2015, 5,738 under cycle 1 and 4,656 under cycle 2. In 2016 and 2019, 4,656 water bodies were assessed.

Description of Indicator 21

The WFD specifies the quality elements that can be used to assess the surface water status of a water body. Quality elements can be biological (for example, fish, invertebrates and plants), chemical (for example, heavy metals, pesticides and nutrients) or indicators of the condition of the habitats and water flows and levels (for example, presence of barriers to fish migration and modelled lake level data). Under WFD the one-out-all-out approach means that if just one quality element fails good status, the overall water body classification will be less than good. Classifications indicate where the quality of the environment is good, where it may need improvement and what may need to be improved. They can also be used, over the years, to plan improvements, show trends and monitor progress.

Surface water status in WFD looks at both the chemical status and the ecological (including biological and habitat condition) status of a water body. Chemical status comprises around 50 priority substances. Other chemicals are included as elements in ecological status. Chemical and ecological status are reported separately but can be combined as an overall status.

Relevance

Surface waters with good status support a diverse assemblage of aquatic invertebrates, fish, mammals and birds. The Water Environment (Water Framework Directive) (England and Wales) 2017 regulations aim to improve and integrate the way water bodies are managed throughout England and Wales. England aims to reach good chemical and ecological status in inland and coastal waters by 2027 at the latest. England is striving to improve and protect the condition of the water environment: objectives to improve and protect each water body have been set; and measures defined to ensure meeting the objectives.

The indicator shows progress towards commitments to reduce environmental pressures and protect freshwater ecosystems. It is relevant to outcomes 1, 2 and 3 of Biodiversity 2020: A strategy for England’s wildlife and ecosystem services (see Annex A). The indicator is also relevant to international goals and targets (see Annex B of the aforementioned publication for further details).

The UK and England Biodiversity Indicators are currently being assessed alongside the Environment Improvement Plan Targets, and the new Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework Targets, when this work has been completed the references to Biodiversity 2020 and the Aichi Global Biodiversity Framework Targets will be updated.

Background

The WFD came into force in December 2000 It requires the protection and improvement of the water environment, through river basin management plans. These plans set environmental objectives for water bodies and set out programmes of measures to achieve those objectives. There are a number of water quality objectives in WFD, and key aspects are:

  • aquatic ecology and water chemistry
  • the impact of physical modification of water bodies
  • specific unique and valuable habitats (protected sites) drinking water resources; and
  • bathing waters and coastal waters use for shellfish aquaculture

In 2019, 751 surface water bodies (16%) in England were in high or good status (Figure 21.1). A breakdown of the headline measure by water body type is presented in Figure 21.2 and in the text below. In 2019, 16% of rivers and canals, 14% of lakes and 29% of estuaries and coastal water bodies in England were in high or good status.

Figure 21.2: Status classifications of surface water bodies in England, by water body type, under the water framework directive, 2009 to 2019.

Download the data for Figure 21.2 in ods format

Source: Environment Agency

Notes about Figure 21.2:

  • based on numbers of surface water bodies classified under the Water Framework Directive (WFD) in England. Includes rivers, canals, lakes, estuaries and coastal water bodies, but excludes SSSI ditches and surface water transfers
  • water bodies that are heavily modified or artificial (HMAWBs) are included in this indicator alongside natural water bodies. HMAWBs are classified as high, good, moderate, poor or bad ‘ecological potential’. Results have been combined; for example, the number of water bodies with a high status classification has been added to the number of HMAWBs with high ecological potential
  • the results published each year until 2016 relate to data reported in that year data reported in a given year relate to data collected over the previous year. In 2016, the Environment Agency moved to a triennial reporting system therefore no new data was collected for 2017 and 2018. The most recent classification was in 2019
  • the percentage of water bodies in each status classification has been calculated based on the total number of that type of water body assessed in each year
  • the total number of water bodies assessed varies slightly from year to year
  • data from 2015 onwards are not directly comparable to those in earlier years due to a change in methodology

Percentage of surface water bodies in England awarded each status classification in 2022; by water body type:

  • Rivers and canals (Total number of water bodies = 3,900): High 0.1%; Good 15.8%; Moderate 62.3%; Poor 18.6%; Bad 3.2%.
  • Estuaries and coastal (Total number of water bodies = 166): High 0.0%; Good 28.9%; Moderate 65.1%; Poor 3.0%; Bad 3.0%.
  • Lakes (Total number of water bodies = 589): High 0.2%; Good 13.9%; Moderate 73.9%; Poor 10.9%; Bad 1.2%.
  • Total figures (Number of water bodies = 4,655): High: 0.1%; Good: 16.0%; Moderate: 63.9%; Poor: 17.0%; Bad: 2.9%

Source: Environment Agency

In England, WFD status classification is based on information obtained from monitoring of water quality and biological elements in both long-term surveillance networks and more risk-based operational networks.

The programme of monitoring that takes place in a given period is informed by the results of the previous cycle of monitoring and risk assessments. Where it is known with high certainty that a water body is in good status or in less-than-good status, monitoring effort can be refocused to areas at higher risk. This helps to target resources where they are needed most in the environment.

Surveillance water bodies are monitored more intensively. One objective of surveillance monitoring is to look for signs of impact from pressures in order to validate risk assessments and provide a consistent, long-term monitoring network of sites. At water bodies chosen for the surveillance network, data collectors aim to monitor all quality elements over a river basin management plan cycle.

If there are no sampling data for a particular classification period, results from previous classifications may be rolled-over into the classification assessment. For example, river phosphorus results are calculated from data from the previous 3 years. If there are no data in that sampling period, the last classification assessment is rolled forward.

During 2013 and 2014, England introduced the Ecological Status Indicator (ESI) monitoring program in order to establish a new fixed network of sampling points and provide a complete baseline of ecological status, covering every river water body in England. This new monitoring program significantly increased the number of samples that would normally be collected in any single year. This improved confidence in the classification of ecological status and reported statistics of environmental change in river water bodies from 2014. It also resulted in the step changes to the number of rivers assessed in 2013 and 2014 as being in each of the status classifications (see Figures 21.1 and 21.2).

The introduction of new WFD monitoring data and classification standards (including a new baseline adopting all of the new standards, tools, designations and water body boundaries) in 2014 led to a step change in the number of water bodies assessed as being in each status classification in following years. It also led to a reduction in the total number of water bodies being assessed because under the new WFD guidance, water bodies below the 10 kilometres squared catchment area no longer need to be included. The formal reporting of new standards used the second cycle plans published in 2015. The Environment Agency reported using cycle 2 for the first time in 2015, alongside reporting for the end of cycle 1 in both 2015 and 2016. New water body classifications were produced in 2019 for reporting of the third cycle plans which were published in 2022. This is combined with a review of monitoring and data provision for reporting on the state of the water environment in future. Since the indicator was last published, the ‘Natural Capital and Ecosystems Assessment’ (NCEA) is now underway which will provide a statistically robust assessment of the health of the water environment and how this changes over time at a national scale.

Information on the objectives to improve and protect each water body, as well as measures defined to ensure the objectives are met, can be found on the Environment Agency website (see links below).

Further information on surface water status

Further information on surface water status is available through, the:

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