A water company has been given funding to improve the quality of rivers with the help of AI.

Northumbrian Water has been awarded funding from water regulator Ofwat to work with IT firm Cognizant to track river health trends and pollution patterns.

The money is part of the Ofwat Innovation Fund, which is a £200m project to grow the water sector’s capacity in England and Wales.

Northumbrian Water said reducing river pollution was one of the “biggest challenges” it faced.