Yorkshire Water

The company's area includes West Yorkshire, South Yorkshire, the East Riding of Yorkshire, part of North Lincolnshire, most of North Yorkshire and part of Derbyshire. The area is adjoined on the north by that of Northumbrian Water, on the west by United Utilities, on the south west by Severn Trent Water and on the south by Anglian Water. It serves 2.3 million households and 130,000 business customers.

Yorkshire Water has received fines for breaches of environmental law. For example:

• Yorkshire Water was fined twice in April 2007. The first offence was for allowing polluting matter to enter Clifton beck in Brighouse, contrary to section 85(1) of the Water Resources Act 1991. The final incident killed one third of the wildlife along over a mile of the stream.[3] A further incident in the same beck led to a fine of £2,400 in 2004.[4] Yorkshire Water argued that the blockage causing the offence was caused by a third party. Eleven days later, the company was in court again to admit to breaching its discharge consent at its Neiley sewage works, Honley. The discharge consent allowed for biological oxygen demand to exceed 21 mg/l more than three times a year. The Environment Agency demonstrated that the works had breached this limit five times in 2005, resulting in a fine of £16,000 plus £754 in costs.[3]
• Yorkshire Water was fined £6,000 and ordered to pay £9,051 in costs for supplying "unfit water" in May 2006 in a prosecution brought by the Drinking Water Inspectorate, under the Water Industry Act 1991. It pleaded guilty to three offences. Properties in Harlow Moor, Harrogate, had received discoloured water supplies in February 2004, which was caused by work on its supply mains stirring up sediment. About 1,200 properties were affected and 64 customers complained. The Drinking Water Inspectorate said to the ENDS Report that this was not the first time that the company had failed to check valves before working on its distribution mains. Before this incident, the DWI had prosecuted it four times.[5]
• Yorkshire Water's largest fine, of £119,000 (reduced to £80,000 on appeal), with costs of £125,598, was received in December 2000 after pleading guilty to seventeen charges of supplying water unfit for human consumption.[6]
• Yorkshire Water was investigated under caution in October 2008 by the Environment Agency following a leak of sewage into Whitby Harbour. The leak was caused by a pump failure and resulted in sewage leaking into the harbour for 52 hours.

In June 1996, Yorkshire water was effectively fined £40 million by the regulator, Ofwat, by freezing their ability to raise bills for customers. This was a result of what Ofwat described as a "failure to deliver the standards required to consumers".[7] This fine was a result of being the most hated water company during the "year of the drought" (1995).[8] However, Yorkshire Water's performance had turned around so much so that the company was awarded the title by Utility Week magazine three years in succession while no other water company has won it more than once."[9]

Yorkshire Water ranked 11th of 21 water companies in Ofwat’s ‘Satisfaction by company’ survey 2012/13.[14]

in January 2015 the UK Customer Service Index (UKCSI) announced that Yorkshire Water was the leader for service in the Utilities sector, they were also the second most improved organisation in the whole UKCSI, beating competitors such as Severn Trent, Anglian, Thames Water as well as United Utilities and EDF.

The UKCSI is the only external measure showing the state of customer satisfaction in the UK and allows individuals to benchmark across all sectors as well as utilities.

Not taking into account human composition: In the year ending 31 March 2013, 99.93% of Yorkshire Water’s samples met the UK standards; in the previous year it was 99.95%.[15]

In 2012/13 the company’s greenhouse gas emissions totalled 386 kilotonnes, compared to 394 kilotonnes the previous year.[15]

The authority created in 1973 took over the following public sector water supply utilities:

In early 1999 the company took over York Waterworks Company, a small water-only company serving the city of York.

Yorkshire Water allows recreational use of some of its reservoirs. Activities include walking, fishing, horse riding, cycling, water sports and bird watching. Reservoirs with public access include:

Full details are given on their leisure website. Walking packs and podcasts are available for free download for some of these reservoirs.

Other reservoirs include:

• Booth Wood Reservoir
• Gouthwaite Reservoir
• Graincliffe Reservoir
• Leighton Reservoir
• Roundhill Reservoir
• Watersheddles Reservoir (in Lancashire, but supplies West Yorkshire)

• Official website