Birketts’ water group brings together expertise from across our energy and infrastructure, utilities, regulatory, real estate, planning, environmental, and agricultural teams to support corporate and landowner clients operating within the water sector.

Water use, storage, purity, infrastructure and management are becoming increasingly important in the context of development, climate change, and environmental regulation. It is an essential resource for our clients.

Birketts recognise the importance for an expanding range of clients in having access to a dedicated water sector team. Our team advises landowners, developers, utility providers, and public bodies on legal issues connected with water, sources, storage, assets, applications, land use, and infrastructure projects.

We provide advice on matters such as land rights for water infrastructure, drainage and flood risk considerations, nutrient neutrality, water sharing and easements, reservoirs and pipelines, abstraction and discharge issues, purity, and the interaction between water projects and planning or environmental regimes. Our lawyers also support clients in navigating regulatory requirements and engaging with relevant authorities and stakeholders.

The group brings together and builds on existing strengths across the firm, particularly in agriculture, utilities, development land, river catchment nature recovery projects and environmental land management schemes, and rural matters, and provides a platform for supporting future water related projects as investment and regulation in this area continues to grow.

Our approach is practical and collaborative, helping clients understand risk, manage competing interests, and progress water related projects with confidence in a complex and evolving landscape.

Our Experience

Nutrient Neutrality

Acting for an estate landowner putting in place an agreement for lease for a nutrient neutrality scheme over 25 acres serving a three thousand unit residential development.

Water Treatment Plant

Acting for a landowner granting an option to a national water company acquiring approximately 100 acres for a regionally important sustainable water treatment plant along with associated pipeline easements.

Habitat Mitigation

Advising a national developer on securing rights to acquire multiple sites for habitat mitigation, establishing water dependant habitat, replacing land being used for development, including a habitat management agreement and cosnervation covenant.

Landscape recovery

Acting for multiple landowners within a catchment area reducing impact of various land uses on catchment water quality.