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Water Suppliers Urged To Do More To Safeguard Water Supplies
Water companies around the UK are being urged to do more to protect the environment and safeguard the country’s precious water supplies, following a joint letter that was sent out in July calling on them to drive investment as part of plans for a green economic recovery from the pandemic.
Environment minister Rebecca Pow challenged the chief executives of 15 water firms to take stronger action on environmental priorities, particularly where storm overflows, chalk streams and water resources and leakage are concerned.
While improvements have been seen with regards to leakage rates, the government still expects rates to be halved by the year 2050.
Where chalk streams are concerned, these are still at risk of low flows, poor water quality and unsustainable abstraction. Ms Pow encouraged the companies to raise their ambitions to improve catchments, asking the chief executives to join her at a summit due to be held in October.
As for storm overflows, it is essential that the volume of sewage discharged into waterways during extreme weather events is reduced and a new taskforce has been set up to reduce the frequency and volumes of such incidents.
Ms Pow went on to say: ““Water companies need to take their environmental obligations seriously and this impetus must come from the top.
“Despite investment from the industry, the damage inflicted on our environment – our rivers, lakes, streams and the wildlife that rely on them – is still far too great. Today we discussed a number of issues I feel strongly about, including storm overflows, and how we can work together to see much more ambitious improvements.
“This country’s green recovery from coronavirus can only happen if water companies step up and play their part.”
Businesses concerned about the pressure being put on water supplies in this country as a result of population growth, increased urbanisation and climate change can start taking action now to reduce their reliance on mains water.
There are all sorts of strategies you can adopt to help boost the water efficiency of your operations, whether you decide to prioritise leak detection and repair first or something like the installation of rainwater harvesting systems on site.
Here at H2o Building Services, we can advise you on the best course of action to take in this regard – and the good news is that by working to save water, you’ll also be saving yourself a lot of money into the bargain.
The majority of businesses are overpaying on water, whether they know it or not, mainly because of the amount of water that is wasted on a daily basis from small leaks and because of overbilling.
If you’d like to find out more about how you can save water and money at the same time, get in touch with our team of consultants today.