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Water, waste, and pollution

Domestic and industrial use of water and the production of waste are significant contributors to climate gas emissions. Each account for about 6% of household emissions, and about a third of business and industrial emissions across the economy. In addressing these issues, there are a mix of strategies available to industry and to public sector organisations.

Government has set a number of targets for household and business waste which progressively shift the balance from use and disposal of resources and materials towards more efficient models of consumption, combined with circular processes where reuse and recycling are designed in to enable re-use, are both key to reducing the call on our resources, and to the reduction of emissions.

Government is also committed to improve the quality of water and reducing the pollution from waste water through regulation of the water industry.

Better mapping, planning and monitoring of infrastructure can ensure that development can be more efficient leading to the impacts and costs of disruption being minimised and carbon risks mitigated. North East businesses and Local Authorities have made an impact in these areas over the last 2 decades and there are case studies of UK-leading innovation and new forms of delivery in the region. But there is more to do to build on work to date to achieve Net Zero ambitions, including the acceleration of progress to shift the balance of design and production to these approaches.

What the evidence tells us

Our evidence base shows there has been a 42% fall in CO2 emissions from domestic sources in the North East LEP since 2005, with this source now representing 32% of all CO2 emissions in the region. 

Explore the evidence

Partner think piece

Tom Andrewartha, Customer Strategy & Campaign Delivery Manager at Northumbrian Water and Chair of the UK Water Efficiency Strategy Steering Group’s Water and Energy Task and Finish Group, explains how water usage is inextricably linked to achieving net zero.

Read the think piece

Our assets

The region has a range of assets which can support a strong drive towards recycling and decarbonisation. These include: 

Northumbrian Water

Northumbrian Water own significant water storage and treatment assets across the region, which provide a focus for decarbonisation activities such as wastewater processing, decarbonisation of energy and power, and water capture and storage.

Housing retrofit

There are significant programmes of housebuilding and retrofit of homes and public buildings occurring across the region. Ensuring these integrate leading water and waste processing technologies can make a significant impact on emissions.

Waste management and recycling

North East Local Authorities operate significant waste management and recycling operations and are part of a national £10 billion programme of investment in recycling infrastructure, aiming to meet government’s 65% recycling target and create 40,000 jobs.

Circular thinking

North East businesses are responsible for using significant volumes of water and waste. There are businesses within the region with the expertise to safely recycle waste and building more circular thinking into business models can create opportunities to improve efficiency.

Challenges

  • Lack of feasible or affordable alternative to current water treatments and capturing emissions from these processes is extremely expensive. 
  • Revised procurement processes are required to manage emissions from the sector enabling stronger influence over the water and waste supply chain which has a significant role to play in reducing greenhouse gas emissions. For example, key chemicals are needed to cleanse water and enhance taste, and the process of producing these delivers carbon emissions. This is a challenge for the regulatory and investment framework.
  • Calculation of emissions that relate to water, waste and construction activity is extremely challenging, so work needs to be progressed to disaggregate the emission process with the aim of reporting and decarbonising the different stages of the supply chain activity.
  • Lack of current support schemes to businesses and householders to promote and incentivise efficiency and more circular approaches

Opportunities

  • Modest reductions in household water use of 5-6% can deliver annual emissions savings of around 1.3 MtCO2e nationally.
  • Harness waste for vehicles by recovering ammonia from wastewater and its conversion to green hydrogen, building on work to date to generate energy from waste.
  • Collaborative geo-spatial planning and delivery. The North East is a pilot region for the Cabinet Office’s Geospatial Commission. The National Underground Asset Register (NUAR), which is developing a shared approach to underground data sharing about pipelines, energy and telecommunications networks and other underground infrastructure to minimise the need to excavate roads and other surfaces through co-ordination of works. When in place the database will enable strengthen planning and more efficient development and maintenance.
  • Delivering water and waste efficiency measures in new buildings and retrofitting of existing buildings, through strengthened advice to homeowners and businesses.
  • Focus on decarbonising waste & recycling facilities by strengthened sorting of waste and the conversion of waste to renewable power, removal or organic waste, conversion of fleets to electricity and capturing waste gases from landfill.
  • Build on best practice to drive reduced waste productions, enhanced recycling and diverting landfill. For example, Newcastle Council has set specific targets to increase each of these activities by 20%, by 2030.
  • The seven North East Councils are working on a joint plan for a new Energy Recovery Facility to treat ‘residual waste’ that should ensure over 90% of waste is diverted from landfill, delivering improved sustainability and reduced carbon emissions. 

What we are doing already

There is a strong drive in this area towards recycling and decarbonisation with strong performance to date and a range of innovative approaches underway – here are some examples, but we’d love to hear if you are involved something we don’t know about.