The Water Framework Directive is a piece of European legislation that states that all UK waterbodies (rivers, lakes, seas) must be in ‘good ecological status’ by 2027.
| Waterbody | Overall Waterbody Classification | Reasons For Failure | Hydromorphological Supporting Elemements | Supporting Elements (Surface Water) | |
| Stort (at Clavering) | Moderate | Dissolved Oxygen (Moderate) | Hydrological Regime | Supports Good | Not Assessed |
| Phosphate (Poor) | Morphology | Supports Good | |||
| Stort and Bourne Brook | Moderate | Macrophyte and Phytobenthos Combined (Moderate) | Hydrological Regime | Supports Good | Not Assessed |
| Dissolved Oxygen (Moderate) | Morphology | Supports Good | |||
| Phosphate (Poor) | |||||
| Stanstead Brook | Bad | Invertebrates (Bad) | Hydrological Regime | Supports Good | Not Assessed |
| Macrophytes and Phytobenthos Combined (Poor) | Morphology | Supports Good | |||
| Stort and Navigation, B Stortford to Harlow | Moderate | Phosphate (Poor) | Hydrological Regime | Supports Good | Mitigation Measures Assessment (Moderate or Less) |
| Great Hallingbury Brook | Moderate | Phosphate (Poor) | Hydrological Regime | Supports Good | Not Assessed |
| Morphology | Supports Good | ||||
| Little Hallingbury Brook | Moderate | Macrophytes and Phytobenthos Combined (Moderate) | Hydrological Regime | Supports Good | Not Assessed |
| Phosphate (Moderate) | Morphology | Supports Good | |||
| Pincey Brook | Moderate | Phosphate (Poor) | Hydrological Regime | Supports Good | Not Assessed |
| Morphology | Supports Good | ||||
| Stort and Navigation, Harlow to Lee | Moderate | Phosphate (Poor) | Hydrological Regime | Supports Good | Mitigation Measures Assessment (Moderate or Less) |
| Cannons Brook | Poor | Fish (Poor) | Hydrological Regime | Supports Good | Not Assessed |
| Invertebrates (Poor) | Morphology | Supports Good | |||
| Macrophytes (Poor) | |||||
| Macrophytes and Phytobenthos Combined (Poor) | |||||
| Phosphate (Poor) | |||||
| Fiddlers Brook | Moderate | Invertebrates (Moderate) | Hydrological Regime | Supports Good | Not Assessed |
| Dissolved Oxygen (Bad) | Morphology | Supports Good | |||
| Phosphate (Moderate) | |||||