Thames Water held a networking event this week London Wetland Centre aimed at targeting more joint initiatives with environmental partners.
More than 120 people attended the NGO networking day, which took place at the London Wetland Centre, to discuss issues including data usage, funding and education projects. Representatives from 47 environmental partner organisations visited the centre in Barnes, which comprises four old Victorian reservoirs and is home to wildlife including swans, geese, otters and bats.
The event began with a welcome from Martin Spray, chief executive of the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust, which runs the centre, before a talk from Richard Aylard, Thames Water’s director of sustainability. Also speaking was Ashley Holt, head of river basin planning at Defra, and Bella Davies, a director at South East Rivers Trust.
Yvette de Garis, Thames Water’s head of environmental regulation, who gave a talk at the event, said:
“We were very pleased to welcome so many of our environmental partners to the Wetland Centre on Monday. We had some interesting and challenging discussions but the overarching message from our stakeholders was clear – the only way to tackle some of the big challenges facing the water industry is if we work together.”
Three smaller sessions were held throughout the day on citizen science data collected by residents and amateur researchers, funding for sustainable urban drainage systems and plans to engage with every schoolchild in the region between 2020 and 2025.
Jenny Phelps, senior advisor at the Farming and Wildlife Advisory Group, said:
“I had a really great day with Thames Water and their ambitious plans to help manage our water resources sustainably. They are extensively planning how to mitigate against climate change to protect our water resources.”
John Waxman, development manager at charity Green Corridor, added:
“It was well organised, very interesting and relevant and also a very good networking opportunity!”
The NGO event was aimed at encouraging more joint projects with partners, which is a key target in Thames Water’s new five-year business plan, to be launched in 2020.
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