Important information in your area

Severn Trent 

Hot Weather May 2020

The recent hot weather means we’re seeing a huge increase in the amount of water being used and we would like to inform you that we consider dry weather conditions to be developing. 

How will Severn Trent be able to help Non-household customers?

• We are actively encouraging all customers to use water wisely and monitoring sensitive customers.
• If customers do become impacted and in terms of offering alternative supplies, Severn Trent work to a priority matrix (see policy documents on our website) and will provide, where possible, alternative supplies; this cannot be guaranteed but every effort will be made. Retailers will be informed via email using the standard format in the RWG good practice guide when this happens.
• We will be contacting customers where we believe they could be using water differently and we’ll notify retailers via email with details of these discussions.

More useful information can be found here.

Southern Water

Demand for water is currently extremely high in the South East of England - we along with other water companies are asking customers to lower their demand for non-essential use where possible, and we hope that you can support us by trying to do the same.

With one of the wettest January and February's on record, we understand this is a confusing message - but we are trying to help people understand that the issue isn't a lack of water, the reservoirs and rivers we draw from are currently looking in good supply. However, the recent high demand means customers are using water faster than we can treat and pump it to their premises.

Lockdown has meant a demand of about 10%-20% more (extra hand washing, showers, cooking, cleaning) 

Hot weather on top of this has recently seen demand for an extra 60 million litres a day on top of that! – that’s around 40million hand washes! And as businesses and schools start to resume we expect to see even more demand.

Here are some water efficiency tips for you.

South West Water

Tap water is precious – use less, save more 

The recent warm, dry weather, coupled with people spending more time at home and in the garden, is increasing demand for water across the region. South West Water says that water usage is at similar levels to 2018 and 2019, despite the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on tourism and business. 

Rob Scarrott, Head of Water Resources and Water Efficiency, said: “Even though we aren’t welcoming visitors to our region at the moment, we are still producing as much water as we were at this time in 2019 and 2018 to keep up with demand from household customers.

“We always see an increase in demand for water as temperatures rise, and a lot of that is down to gardening. This is where collectively we can all help conserve supplies – as well as save money on our water bills.  

“You can ease the pressure on your purse and help protect the environment by only using the tap water you really need. With most people in our region on a water meter, the less we use the lower bills are. We can also offer help on how to make sure you are not using more tap water than you need to.

“Meanwhile, we’re also working hard behind the scenes to detect and repair any leaks quickly and to keep water flowing to homes, hospitals, schools and businesses.”

The company has teamed up with the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) to help green-fingered growers save water and money by using water wisely in the garden. It is also offering free water-saving devices and subsidised water butts at www.southwestwater.co.uk/savewater.

The RHS has appointed a Garden Water Scientist, Janet Manning, whose research will help guide gardeners to be even more water smart. 

Here are some of Janet’s top tips:

• Use a water butt to collect rainwater – it could fill up with water for free 300 times a year
• Use a watering can to get water where your plants really need it – at their roots and not on foliage
• It’s best to water plants early in the morning, or in the evening, when it will take longer for it to evaporate
• Mulch around plants using organic matter such as wood chip or compost. Use stones, gravel or sea shells as a mulch to dress plants in pots. Mulching is marvellous: it deters weeds, improves soil texture and helps soil retain water
• During dry spells, focus watering on young plants as they establish, vegetable crops and plants growing in pots
• Place a stick or other marker where you have planted rambling or trailing plants – that way you know you are watering their roots
• If there is a dry spell, your lawn will not look as lush but it will recover when it rains again. If it needs mowing, set your lawnmower to cut higher and leave clippings where they fall to act as mulch
• Spending more time in the garden lets you get to know it well – which parts dry out first, which areas hold on to water, what is in shade and when. Visit rhs.org.uk for planting ideas.

See more RHS tips at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w2FtszRlmzs.

Rob also has some top tips for saving water in the home:

• Turn off the tap while brushing your teeth 
• Keep a jug of water in the fridge so you don’t have to run your tap cold
• Use a bowl for washing up / rinsing fruit and veg – then use this water for plants
• Have a shower instead of a bath
• Only use your dishwasher or washing machine when you have a full load (this will save money on your energy bills too)
• Only fill the kettle with as much water as you need (this will save energy too)
• Fix leaking taps and toilets

More information and top tips can be found here.

Bristol Water

Information on Bristol Water’s recent publication about water leakage can be found here.

Yorkshire Water

The good weather has meant we’ve had very little rain over the past few months and the levels of water in our reservoirs are lower than they normally would be. We have also been seeing high customer demand as people use more water at home than they would normally due to watering plants, filling paddling pools and pressure washing outside areas. We are working hard to keep Yorkshire’s water supply resilient and we have the ability to move water around the region due to our underground grid network.

We have no notices or restrictions in place in Yorkshire however we are asking customers to help us keep the taps flowing by making small changes to help save water.

By making small adjustments, businesses can reduce their water usage and keep costs down. We have lots of waver saving tips on our website as well as leaflets & posters that can be downloaded and dual branded for your customers: https://www.yorkshirewater.com/business/water-efficiency/.