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Discharging Water from UK Construction & Infrastructure Sites: Let’s Talk About the Challenges

Industry Insights

Effective water management in construction is becoming increasingly important as projects face tighter environmental expectations, increasingly complex site conditions and greater scrutiny around water quality and discharge. Yet water is still too often treated as a problem to solve after it appears.

In RVT Group’s Talking Heads: The Water Series, Daniel Adeoye and Roger McCreadie discuss some of the biggest challenges facing construction teams today, from early-stage planning and environmental compliance to emerging contaminants and the future of water treatment.

Across seven episodes, the series explores the practical steps project teams can take to reduce risk, improve compliance and manage water more effectively.

Episode 1: Water management needs to start earlier

Daniel and Roger jump straight into the deep end by calling out some typical site behaviours. They explain that water management is often overlooked in construction and infrastructure projects, particularly during design and tender stages, because companies do not always see it as “an essential part of their construction process”. This can mean budgets are not allocated early enough, causing delays when permits or treatment solutions are later required. They also explain that most sites do not have a dedicated role for water management, and so there is often very little pro-active thinking around improving site processes. Their concluding thought is that; earlier planning, clearer ownership, better budgeting and greater awareness of legislation, are all essential to water management compliance.

RVT Group’s Talking Heads: The Water Series: Watch Episode 1

Episode 2: Understanding legislation for discharging water from construction sites

Whilst water discharge legislation isn’t complex, you do need to put time into understanding the permissions, permits and discharge requirements that apply to your specific project before releasing water into the environment and causing a potential pollution incident!

In episode 2, Daniel explains that some sites mistakenly believe that all water can be discharged under the Regulatory Position Statement 261, but it’s not always that straightforward. Bespoke permits may require a water management plan alongside appropriate treatment before discharge.

Roger notes that authorities are becoming “more and more active”, taking regulatory action and disrupting site programmes at a huge cost to the contractor.

RVT Group’s Talking Heads: The Water Series: Watch Episode 2

Episode 3: Challenging water projects – One size doesn’t fit all

In this episode, Daniel explains that not all projects are the same; sometimes you can set up an EnviroHub® Water Treatment system and let it run with very little manual interference, whilst other set-ups require a more hands-on approach.

Case Study: Daniel talks about a project that involved treating roughly 350m³ of water per hour, while the ground conditions were constantly changing, which made things very tricky. The client needed a supplier they could rely on, and so they contacted RVT Group. With so much at stake for the client, RVT Group provided a dedicated onsite engineer to watch over the changing conditions and ensure there weren’t any environmental breaches. The project was a success, and the Environment Agency (EA) was satisfied with the water management controls.

RVT Group’s Talking Heads: The Water Series: Watch Episode 3

Episode 4: Continuous water monitoring supports intelligent process control

Daniel explains how monitoring has evolved from manual sampling to real-time control systems and AI-driven prediction. He notes that traditional samples are “only representative of that time frame specifically,” whereas continuous monitoring provides an ongoing data trend. Roger goes on to explain that continuous monitoring gives you full visibility and confirmation of compliance. In summary, this episode discusses how better monitoring can identify problems earlier, improve compliance, protect the environment and support more intelligent process control.

RVT Group’s Talking Heads: The Water Series: Watch Episode 4

Episode 5: What is the UK doing about Combined Sewer Overflows (CSOs)?

Episode 5 focuses on combined sewer overflows (CSOs) and the growing pressure caused by population growth, heavier storm events and overloaded sewer networks.

Daniel Adeoye explains that the current focus in on building larger storm tanks, but explains that this just moves the problem downstream (excuse the pun) and doesn’t solve the issue at all. He argues that “more radical ideas are required to isolate the problem upstream”. For example, rainwater harvesting and sustainable drainage systems could substantially reduce flows from reaching sewage works. Roger agrees that these measures “could have a massive impact on storm water.”

RVT Group’s Talking Heads: The Water Series: Watch Episode 5

Episode 6: How can AMP8 take a proactive approach against PFAS, nitrous oxide and phosphates?

This is a very in-depth topic, and we only touch on it lightly, but it does bring some important questions to the forefront of our minds.

Let’s start with the basics; what is PFAS?

PFAS is a synthetic substance that can be found in many of our everyday products, and they cause a problem to our environment because they don’t break down – they are “forever chemicals”. Daniel explains that there are about 12,000 different types of PFAS, but only 10 of them are regulated*!  He argues that the industry should “start looking to take a proactive approach” rather than waiting for PFAS legislation to progress.

Daniel and Roger then move on to nitrous oxide – What is it and how is it produced?

Nitrous oxide (N₂O) is a growing issue for wastewater treatment because it can be produced unintentionally during the biological processes used to remove nitrogen from sewage. They note that it is “300 times more impactful than carbon dioxide” and say the sector is still gathering data to understand how best to monitor and reduce emissions.

And finally, why are phosphates dangerous to the environment?

Too much phosphorus in discharged wastewater can contribute to eutrophication — excessive plant and algae growth that can reduce oxygen levels and harm aquatic life. Daniel explains that phosphorus is often removed from water by binding it with chemicals such as ferric salts, but then the newly formed solid still needs to be physically removed (often referred to as polishing). Daniel also touches upon Enhanced Biological Phosphorus Removal (EBPR), where microorganisms are encouraged to take up phosphorus naturally. This is a very interesting topic, so watch the video to learn more!

RVT Group’s Talking Heads: The Water Series: Watch Episode 6

Episode 7: the future of water management

In Episode 7, Daniel and Roger talk about the improvements they would like to see in the future of water management*.  

Daniel jumps straight in by challenging the permit process; he explains that one of the key challenges for contractors is that there are permit delays of up to 12 months. This can cause extensive project delays and can substantially increase project costs. He proposes that more responsibility should be given to qualified water-management specialists to help dramatically reduce the regulatory workload.

Roger adds that many permits still rely on “archaic methods of monitoring” and should be updated to reflect “continuous online monitoring.” Daniel also proposes a water-positive approach, where organisations replenish more water than they consume.

Overall, Daniel and Roger would like to see; faster permitting, modern monitoring and more sustainable water management. Watch this episode to learn more.

RVT Group’s Talking Heads: The Water Series: Watch Episode 7

7 Water management points to take away:

Across all seven episodes, one message is consistent: water management should never be an afterthought. Considering water earlier can help projects:

• Reduce environmental risk
• Improve regulatory compliance
• Prevent costly delays
• Identify contamination sooner
• Select appropriate treatment solutions
• Improve water quality monitoring
• Respond more effectively to changing site conditions

Whether you are responsible for environmental management, site operations, project delivery or construction compliance, understanding these issues can help you make better-informed decisions.

Download RVT’s Complete Talking Heads: The Water Series

*Disclaimer: This content was created before 21^st July 2025, when the UK Government announced that Ofwat would be abolished and replaced by a new, single, powerful regulator. This doesn’t affect the credibility of the content within the videos.