Dear Editor,
I think that most gardeners will be pleased that we have had some rain after a very lengthy (but very welcome to non-gardeners!) hot summer.
Over the last decade, we have experienced an increasing change in climate here in the UK.
These new weather conditions urgently need to be matched by a national water management system that is designed and maintained to hold the increased rains of the winter, and deliver them where and when needed in the dry summer.
However, what we have is far from satisfactory.
Reports suggest that in the UK, a whopping 3bn litres of water are lost through leaks every single day; equivalent to 1200 Olympic-sized swimming pools; utterly unacceptable!
Moreover, the cost of that to bill-payers is approximately £400m per year, and it is highly infuriating for customers to be asked to reduce water use when so much is allowed to literally go down the drain.
On top of that, several areas of Cornwall and Devon recently suffered from flash floods caused by a failure to maintain water systems, which will take weeks to clean up and cost millions to the economy.
Predictably, the water companies will argue that they are investing in the national infrastructure; and it is true that they have spent an average of £6bn per year over the last 30 years, but it clearly isn't enough.
The reality is that in some places in Britain, there are still sewers in use that were constructed by the Romans!
Equally, there has not been a single new reservoir built in the last 30 years, and, scandalously, Thames Water alone have actually closed 25 reservoirs and sold off the land to various developers.
Worse than that, we see that there are regular sewage discharges into our lakes, waterways and seas, polluting the water that should be used to provide the resources that we need for agriculture, leisure, and even drinking.
And then, of course, there is the ongoing practice of outrageously huge bonuses paid to senior employees and linked to the widespread ownership of our regional water authorities by huge multinational private equity corporations.
Wessex Water is actually owned by YTL, based in Malaysia, on the other side of the globe!
In 1989, the electorate was promised that privatisation would increase investment and fix all of the issues of the outdated water network.
Although it’s true that we have seen some investment, it’s clearly insufficient.
This cannot be allowed to continue.
The water industry needs to take a new direction, to ensure that it can provide water as and when needed, and to manage our water courses to reduce flooding, preferably by not-for-profit companies strictly regulated by an overall monitoring body with real powers to prosecute and maintain standards.
Like many other services, the whole water industry needs to be operated primarily for the benefit of the country as a whole, and not just for a small group of corporate investors.
Regards,
Tony Sutcliffe
Taunton
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