Water Resource Availability and Abstraction Reliability: UK Water Body Licensing Status

A modelled dataset from the UK Environment Agency indicating the potential for additional water abstraction licensing across Water Framework Directive Cycle 3 water bodies. It categorizes water bodies by availability using a color-coded system: green for available, yellow for restricted, red for unavailable, and grey for heavily modified or discharge-rich bodies. The data comprises estimated or modelled results based on available information, not raw measurements.

Use Cases

• Assess water availability for new abstraction licenses based on the color-coded water body status.
• Model local water resource risks using the estimated outcomes for heavily modified or discharge-rich water bodies.
• Plan regional water resource strategies using the spatial coverage of abstraction reliability.
• Support regulatory compliance assessments for the Water Framework Directive Cycle 3.

Strengths

• Provides a clear, color-coded classification system (green, yellow, red, grey) for water availability.
• Covers Water Framework Directive Cycle 3 water bodies across the UK.
• Based on modelling and estimation from the authoritative Environment Agency.

Limitations

• Data is modelled or estimated, not raw or measured factual data.
• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.

Provenance

Source

Environment Agency

Collection Method

Modelled or estimated results based on available data.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-05-29 14:43:45.054701; freshness should be verified.

Geography

United Kingdom (Water Framework Directive Cycle 3 water bodies)