WFD Groundwater Body Classifications (2019)

WFD Groundwater Bodies Cycle 2 Classification 2019 is an alternate version of ‘WFD Groundwater Bodies Cycle 2’ with the addition of 2019 classification data and additional user attribution (including CaBA partnership identifiers). The geometry has been simplified to improve user experience, so the high resolution legal definition of these water bodies remains ‘WFD Groundwater Bodies Cycle 2’. These are polygon datasets which have been created for the implementation of the Water Framework Directive (WFD). Article 2, clause 2 of the WFD defines them as '…all water which is below the surface of the ground in the saturation zone and in direct contact with the ground or subsoil'. For the purposes of reporting under the WFD a groundwater body represent a distinct body of groundwater flow with a coherent flow unit including recharge and discharge areas with little flow across the boundaries. These reflect hydrogeological characteristics containing information on flow and stage properties, recharge and vulnerability to pollution. This has been undertaken through defining aquifers into different types and broken into catchment units at Catchment Abstraction Management Strategy (CAMS) scale. The primary input dataset is '1:625K Classified Aquifer Geology' that has been constructed by the Environment Agency. This dataset has been digitised directly from the hard copy '1:250K Solid Geology Map' and classified according to aquifer type and are therefore directly derived from the underlying BGS data. These classifications were verified by the British Geology Survey (BGS). These data have gone out for consultation at Area level and in some instances 1:50K Solid Geology has been used to define localised boundaries. The geometry of this dataset has then been simplified to allow for fast display, analysis and reduced file sizes. Since water bodies are attributed with a unique water body identifier 'WB_ID' this dataset can be linked directly to other WFD data sources. Find out more at data.gov.uk.