Rebecca Explores Cyprus With The UK Irrigation Association

November 29, 2019

Last month our Hydrologist Rebecca Haw was honoured to receive a Jack Wright Memorial Trust scholarship for the UKIA visit to Cyprus to learn about the water scarcity that Cyprus faces as well as the solutions that are being put in place to meet critical agricultural demand.

The body content of your post The Jack Wright Memorial Trust was set up in 1966 in honour of Jack Wright who pioneered irrigation within the UK. The trust has a long legacy of supporting early career professionals and students through travel scholarships.

The three day trip was packed with multiple site visits, presentations and tours of different agricultural water users and irrigation systems, including reservoir storage, artificial recharge and greywater reuse.

Rebecca recalls highlights of the trip:

“During the trip we were shown many different irrigation setups from well-established large scale citrus plantations to smaller scale fruit and vegetable operations and vineyards. Everyone we spoke to had an excellent knowledge about the water situation their country is facing. While each location irrigated using a sprinkler or drip irrigation, they all recognised that becoming more efficient and reducing their water usage was critical not only for their country but for their business to survive.goes here. To edit this text, click on it and delete this default text and start typing your own or paste your own from a different source.


Whilst in Cyprus there was also a lot of discussion around the sources of water, prior to 2008 most of the irrigation water used on the island was fresh potable water from reservoirs. Following a devastating water shortage in 2008 where over 8Mm3 of water had to be imported at a cost of €56M, people began to accept alternative water sources. Desalination plants were built along the coastline to provide domestic water supplies and wherever possible (tree crop) agriculture began to use grey water from wastewater treatment works for irrigation. These two alternative sources of water provided a reduction in demand on stored rainwater making the country more resilient to period with low rainfall.


Throughout Cyprus a large effort is made to reduce the amount of water lost to the sea. Over 90% of water that enters their wastewater treatment facilities is reused either for agriculture or as groundwater recharge (also known as Managed Aquifer Recharge). Managed Aquifer Recharge allows treated water to be put into aquifers, taking advantage of groundwater storage, which can then be abstracted when required. Water for recharge is captured along the river bed by bunds where it infiltrates into the subsurface. There would be merit in looking at the applicability of such a system in the UK.

The trip has been an excellent experience and I have learnt a lot about the pressures and mitigation applied within a water scarce country, which I feel I can bring back to the UK and include in my work. The delegates on the trip came from such a wide range of backgrounds, and brought a wealth of knowledge on each subject, giving me invaluable opportunity to understand each topic in the UK context.


I would like to thank the Jack Wright Memorial Trust for providing me with this opportunity and would strongly recommend others to apply for future travel scholarships to further their knowledge and careers.”


Here at Envireau Water we embrace such fantastic opportunities for our team to broaden their knowledge and continue developing. Congratulations to Rebecca for receiving this scholarship from all of us at Envireau Team!


Share

Recent Environment Agency Updates

By Rachael Plant • April 8, 2025
Since December 2024, the Environment Agency (EA) have released a series of flood and coastal erosion risk assessment updates, offering a clearer, more comprehensive picture of both current and future flood risk across England. What makes these updates so important? With approximately 6.3 million properties in England at risk of flooding and 3,500 properties at risk of coastal erosion by 2055, these updates are absolutely critical in order for you to protect and enhance your developments against the threat of climate change and extreme weather events. Whether a commercial or residential development, Envireau Water specialise in flood risk management and sustainable drainage solutions across the UK. By leveraging our technical expertise and deep knowledge of the UK regulatory system, we are known for achieving a positive outcome for even the most complex of challenges. Keep reading to find out what these updates mean for you.

World Water Day 2025

By Rachael Plant • March 21, 2025
Climate change is an urgent issue we cannot ignore, and requires the collective action of communities across the globe if the worst effects are to be mitigated. From rising sea levels, extreme weather events to a loss of biodiversity, the potential impacts are widespread. However, this world water day, the focus is rightly on glacial preservation - our planet's largest natural freshwater reservoir. Why is it important? At Envireau Water, we recognise the widespread impact that glacial meltwater has across the whole planet, leading to the escalation of more extreme weather events as a result. Not only does this impact the environment with the disruption of ecosystems and water cycles, but also has a profound impact on society and industries reliant on a stable water supply. As a team of water scientists, we have witnessed first-hand the undeniable impact that flooding and drought events have had on the mineral, agricultural, industrial and development sectors, from failing crops and flooded farmland to a halt in distilling operations and delayed development projects, the ripple effects of these events are felt across communities and businesses alike.

Setting up for Regulatory Success

By Rachael Plant • March 18, 2025
It is safe to say that Envireau Water have had a long line of success stories over our years of operation across our four sectors of expertise, with permitting and licensing being just one of our many service offerings. So, what has fuelled our success? To get some insight, we turned to our Specialist Water Resources team for their perspective. Penny , can you expand on Envireau Water's success in this area? 'Water is a vital resource across many industries, without which they would not be able to operate effectively. However, this does not come without certain regulatory constraints, which must be abided by. That's where we come in.
Show More

Recent Environment Agency Updates

By Rachael Plant • April 8, 2025
Since December 2024, the Environment Agency (EA) have released a series of flood and coastal erosion risk assessment updates, offering a clearer, more comprehensive picture of both current and future flood risk across England. What makes these updates so important? With approximately 6.3 million properties in England at risk of flooding and 3,500 properties at risk of coastal erosion by 2055, these updates are absolutely critical in order for you to protect and enhance your developments against the threat of climate change and extreme weather events. Whether a commercial or residential development, Envireau Water specialise in flood risk management and sustainable drainage solutions across the UK. By leveraging our technical expertise and deep knowledge of the UK regulatory system, we are known for achieving a positive outcome for even the most complex of challenges. Keep reading to find out what these updates mean for you.

World Water Day 2025

By Rachael Plant • March 21, 2025
Climate change is an urgent issue we cannot ignore, and requires the collective action of communities across the globe if the worst effects are to be mitigated. From rising sea levels, extreme weather events to a loss of biodiversity, the potential impacts are widespread. However, this world water day, the focus is rightly on glacial preservation - our planet's largest natural freshwater reservoir. Why is it important? At Envireau Water, we recognise the widespread impact that glacial meltwater has across the whole planet, leading to the escalation of more extreme weather events as a result. Not only does this impact the environment with the disruption of ecosystems and water cycles, but also has a profound impact on society and industries reliant on a stable water supply. As a team of water scientists, we have witnessed first-hand the undeniable impact that flooding and drought events have had on the mineral, agricultural, industrial and development sectors, from failing crops and flooded farmland to a halt in distilling operations and delayed development projects, the ripple effects of these events are felt across communities and businesses alike.

Setting up for Regulatory Success

By Rachael Plant • March 18, 2025
It is safe to say that Envireau Water have had a long line of success stories over our years of operation across our four sectors of expertise, with permitting and licensing being just one of our many service offerings. So, what has fuelled our success? To get some insight, we turned to our Specialist Water Resources team for their perspective. Penny , can you expand on Envireau Water's success in this area? 'Water is a vital resource across many industries, without which they would not be able to operate effectively. However, this does not come without certain regulatory constraints, which must be abided by. That's where we come in.

Achieving Nutrient Neutrality

By Rachael Plant • March 11, 2025
Achieving nutrient neutrality is a challenging task, and is one that developers all over the country have battled to achieve over the last 5-6 years. In March 2022, Natural England issued a directive to Local Planning Authorities, County Councils, the Environment Agency, the Planning Inspectorate, Natural Resources Wales, and DLUHC stating that, in specific river catchments, developments should not be permitted if the LPA cannot definitively ensure that it will not adversely impact protected environmental sites due to increased levels of nitrate and/or phosphate. While the current approach is efficient, robust, and objective, it can also be slow, costly, and overly complex—leading to potential project delays and increased expenses for housing developers. To address these challenges, the government released the Planning Reform Working Paper in December 2024. This initiative aims to unlock approximately 28,000 homes across seven areas in England that had been stalled due to nutrient neutrality concerns, backed by £47 million from the Local Nutrient Mitigation Fund.
Show More