Water companies are adopting disinformation tactics similar to those used by the fossil fuel and tobacco industries with the widespread use of greenwashing to downplay the environmental harm they cause, a study says.
Environmental scientists analysed the communications of the nine main water and sewerage companies in England, and compared them with a framework of 28 greenwashing tactics employed, researchers say, by the tobacco, alcohol, fossil fuels and chemical industries.
The water companies have adopted 22 of these tactics to downplay environmental harm, misrepresent information, undermine scientific research, shift blame and delay action, the researchers say.
The lead author of the research, which was published on Monday in the journal Nature Water, Prof Alex Ford, of the University of Portsmouth’s school of the environment and life sciences and institute of marine sciences, said: “Water and sewage companies have prolonged environmental injustice by using a playbook of tactics other large polluters have relied upon in the past to mislead the public and influence government agencies or laws.”
The research suggests water companies have softened the language around raw sewage discharges by rebranding sewage treatment facilities as “water recycling centres”. They have also described sewage overflows as “heavily diluted rainwater” even when untreated sewage was present and posed a threat to public health.
The paper, titled Water Industry Strategies to Manufacture Doubt and Deflect Blame for Sewage Pollution in England, highlights what the researchers say is water companies misrepresenting their environmental performance while facing scrutiny for discharging untreated sewage for 12.7m hours into English waterways between 2019 and 2023.
The nine companies analysed in the study were Thames Water, Southern Water, South West Water, Wessex Water, United Utilities, Anglian Water, Northumbrian Water, Yorkshire Water and Severn Trent Water.
Some companies used what researchers said was emotive language around raw sewage discharges into rivers from overflows, presenting the public with a binary choice between flooding schools and hospitals with raw sewage, or allowing discharges through combined sewer overflows to reduce the pressure in the system and protect these institutions.
Public campaigns by water companies also pointed the finger of blame at customers for raw sewage overflows into rivers, claiming wet wipes were the primary cause, but downplaying problems with ageing infrastructure. Companies have exaggerated the cost of solving these problems, according to the paper, quoting figures as high as £660bn, to manage expectations around investment and reform.
The paper’s co-author, Prof Jamie Woodward, from the department of geography at the University of Manchester, has linked the discharge of sewage and untreated wastewater to widespread microplastic contamination of UK riverbeds.
“Public trust in these companies is at an all-time low – the public deserve much clearer communication from the water companies and full transparency on the scale and impact of sewage pollution,” he said. “Dumping sewage degrades precious ecosystems and poses a real and present danger to public health.”
Ford said the companies had adopted a playbook of denial, deflection and distraction, similar to other big polluting industries, to protect profits at the expense of the environment and public health.
The paper calls for stricter regulation of industry communications to combat greenwashing and misinformation. The authors also highlight the need for greater investment in sustainable solutions, such as restoring wetlands, alongside modernising sewerage systems.
The study comes at a time of increasing public and legal pressure on water companies. Last October, the government launched an independent water commission to strengthen regulation, increase investment and inform further reform of the water sector.
Ford said: “Water as a finite resource, and in a monopolised industry, could become more profitable when financial drivers are poorly regulated. These same financial drivers have resulted in a failing infrastructure which hasn’t increased capacity or been maintained to cope with population growth, climate change and our improved knowledge of chemical contaminants.”
A spokesperson for Water UK, the trade association for the water industry, said: “Contrary to the claims of this paper the English water sector is one of the most transparent in the world. Last year England became the first country in the world to make near-real time storm overflow data publicly available. In addition, data on company performance is regularly published by the sector’s regulators.
“However, we recognise more needs to be done to end sewage spills and have previously apologised for not doing enough. Companies are poised to invest the largest amount of money ever on the natural environment – including more than £11 billion to almost halve spills from storm overflows by 2030.”
