The Water Undertakers (Information) Direction 1998 (the ‘Information Direction’) requires water companies to inform the Inspectorate of all events that have affected, or are likely to affect drinking water quality, or sufficiency of supplies and, where as a result, there may be a risk to consumers’ health.

Companies are required to notify the Inspectorate as soon as possible of any events which, in their opinion, meet the criteria set down in the Information Direction.

DWI Information Letter 13/99 provides further guidance on these criteria.

Notified events must be confirmed in writing within 72 hours and a full report must be provided within one month for all events deemed by the Inspectorate to be incidents.

Companies are also encouraged to notify the Inspectorate of events not meeting the prescribed criteria, but which could impact on water quality or cause concern to consumers.

Water quality events are classified according to the following definitions:

DWI Inspectors assess every event and, if required, take action against water companies

Assessment - Inspectors assess the water company's 72hour report to determine whether the event is an incident. If the event is deemed to be an incident a 30day report may also be required. The Inspector assesses all the information available to determine:

• what caused the problem and whether or not it was avoidable;
• what the company did in response and how it handled the incident;
• what lessons can be learned to prevent similar incidents in the future;
• if there were any breaches of enforceable regulations; and
• whether the company supplied water that was unfit for human consumption.
  

Outcome - This table summarises the typical outcomes of assessments based on the severity of the problem and the actions taken as a result.

More detail on the assessment process, including a flow diagram which illustrates the process and timescale in which incidents and nonincidents are managed by water companies and the Inspectorate respectively, is available on the website.

Details of events notified and assessments during 2003

Brief descriptions of all incidents are given in the relevant individual company sections in Part 2 of this report. A total of 99 incidents, which affected or were likely to affect the quality of water supplied to approximately 2.3 million consumers, were notified to the Inspectorate during 2003. The period during which water quality was actually compromised ranged from a few hours to several days. In addition, 254 notifications were made which were classified as nonincidents.

This chapter and the individual company sections summarise those events which occurred in 2003 but, in a change from previous reports, it only acknowledges those assessments fully completed in 2003. It is the Inspectorate's aim to complete assessments within three months of notification. However, events notified towards the end of the calendar year may not be assessed until the next calendar year. Also if prosecution proceedings are being considered, the assessment will not be completed until such proceedings have been concluded.

As at 31 December 2003, a total of 91 (77 from 2003 and 14 pre2003) event assessments were outstanding.

The following table summarises the Inspectorate's position on 31 December 2003 in assessing the incidents and nonincidents notified under the Information Direction.

Note - the reporting period for completion of incident assessment is 1 January to 31 December, not 1 April to 31 March as in previous Chief Inspector's Reports.

Incidents are categorised by the nature, origin and effect of the problem. The chart below provides a breakdown and a fouryear comparison (2000 - 2003) of incident categories.

The total number of notifications made to the Inspectorate during 2003 has decreased to 353, from 398 made in 2002. The number of notifications that have been considered as incidents also decreased in 2003 to 99, from 112.

It should be noted that following completion of assessment by the Inspectorate, a few of the events initially classified as incidents might subsequently be reclassified as nonincidents, and vice versa.

Companies prosecuted or cautioned for supplying water unfit for human consumption

There were no prosecutions of water companies during the 2003 reporting period. In June 2003 the Inspectorate issued a formal caution to Dwr Cymru Cyfyngedig relating to an incident in which discoloured water was supplied to consumers in the Cray district of Swansea in May 2002.

The following table gives the number of prosecutions and cautions, the investigation of which were concluded between 2000 and 2003. It also shows the number of cases pending before court and the number of incidents that were still under consideration as at 31 December 2003. In studying the table it is important to take into account the following:

• the number of incidents occurring can be expected to be approximately proportional to the size of the water company, and particularly the length of the distribution system;
• companies with no incidents in these categories are not included in the table;
• many are minor incidents affecting a small number of consumers;
• many of the incidents occur for reasons outside the control of water companies, e.g. a burst main;
• prosecution cases can take at least a year to get to court so they do not necessarily reflect the position today.
  
  Water Company Incidents and Prosecutions 1999-2002