Not so much a good deed as clearing up the mess they've made. The EA issues licences for water abstraction in the Churn catchment, bott for potable supply and for irrigation.
The churn is fed from a limestone aquifer and the EA had already identified the degradation of the Churn: 'Groundwater abstractions result in significant loss to the catchment. Runoff reduced by industrial/agricultural abstraction - flows generally lower than Cirencester GS due to gravel working. Evaporation from gravel pits may also be a factor in recent years.' says a recent report.
I'm glad that the EA's bit of recent PR about how our rivers have improved is being rubbished by angling groups among others; the reduction in pollution has been almost entirely due to the UK's loss of heavy industry and statute (much of it drafted in the EU) which has addressed chemical pollutants.
Over-abstraction, particularly of groundwater, is a massive problem which the EA is doing very little to address, and is resulting in appalling habitat degradation.