The Idle and Torne management catchment covers a broad and varied landscape, stretching across Nottinghamshire, North Lincolnshire and South Yorkshire. It is a region shaped by both its natural watercourses and its engineered landscape: much of the northern area lies at or below sea level and relies on extensive drainage to make the land farmable. Today, the catchment is predominantly arable, characterised by wide, open fields, historic towns and villages, and a rich industrial heritage that includes former coal mines, quarries and archaeological sites.

At the heart of this area are two operational catchments—the Idle River and the Isle of Axholme (which includes the River Torne). Together they contain numerous water bodies, from heavily modified drainage channels to river sections that feed into the tidal Trent. These watercourses support agriculture, local communities, and important habitats, including former quarry pits that have been designated as Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs). The catchment spans multiple districts and counties, making it a shared landscape where land managers, water companies and environmental partners all play a part in protecting water resources.

Several organisations abstract water from the catchment, with Severn Trent, Anglian Water and Yorkshire Water holding abstraction licences here. Groundwater abstraction is significant, with public water supply making up the majority of licensed use. Much of Severn Trent’s abstraction activity is in the Idle River Operational Catchment, where Severn Trent has already committed to reducing abstraction to help support environmental recovery. These actions reflect the wider ambition across the catchment: to balance the needs of people, agriculture and industry with the long‑term health of the Idle and Torne’s rivers, groundwater and wetlands.

For our Environmental Destination (ED) programme, we are focusing on a specific “area of interest” within the catchment, relevant to our abstractions. Our focus is those surface water bodies where the public water supply companies actively abstract water or where their groundwater abstraction impacts on flow to surface waterbodies. The Idle River Operational Catchment will be the focus area for Severn Trent’s WINEP investigation, they will also be linking up with Anglian Water and Yorkshire Water to share information, develop understanding and consider options.