Bills set to top £500
March 5, 2011 at 2:36 pm
For hard pressed home owners who are struggling with increased bills for gas, electricity, food, and drink, there is bad news on the horizon from the water industry regulator, Ofwat.
Price increases relating to each of the major water companies are to be announced shortly, but it seems that the worst hit customers will be those in the South West of England. The average bill for the 1.3 million South West Water Company households is expected to break the £500 barrier from April this year, going from £487 to £527. By way of explanation for the apparently large increase, South West Water has said that it has to clean up 30% of the country’s coastline but only has 3% of the country’s households as customers.
Consumers in the north of England are somewhat luckier, with the average bill for a Northumbrian Water customer expected to increase from a low £311 to £338.
The national average for a water bill is expected to go up from £364 to £384.
The increased revenue from water bills will be used to fund investment in the infrastructure and mend leaks. Northern Ireland hit the headlines in December when the lack of investment had catastrophic results, with home owners left without water for days on end.
With consumers having no choice over who supplies their water, the only way to save money, apart from reducing the amount used, is to have a water meter installed. For households with more bedrooms than occupants, a meter is almost guaranteed to save on bills.
Water company warns of imminent droughts
February 10, 2011 at 2:33 pm
It’s a well-known fact that we Brits love nothing more than to moan about the weather. With the average British summertime usually consisting of little more than the odd sunny day puncturing the norm of dour, grey, wet days that leave us regretting that stockpile of portable barbecues and the freezer stacked full of sausages and burgers, drizzle and sudden downpours are nothing new to us.
It may, therefore, come as a slight shock to the average Brit that forecasters are issuing warnings about the potential for a future drought across the nation.
Forecasters are concerned that a number of regions in the United Kingdom may experience water shortages over the course of the next year or so, due to the fact that reserves have not been adequately replenished over the winter months. Bristol Water has revealed that reservoirs in the South West are currently just two thirds full after a December that was actually the driest in nearly 50 years.
With the lack of rainfall in regions across the UK including the South West, Wales, and Northern England causing river levels to fall dramatically, water companies are now hoping for a sustained period of heavy rain before spring emerges in order for stocks to be replenished.
Despite the warnings currently being issued by water companies including Bristol Water, the Environment Agency has moved to reassure Brits, with a spokesperson for the agency stating that there is no real cause for alarm, with water levels actually relatively normal compared to the average figures for this time of year.
Yorkshire Water set to face up to criticism
January 27, 2011 at 1:00 pm
Yorkshire Water, the Bradford-based water company, has come under fire for the manner in which it handled an incident that resulted in thousands of homes being left without access to water at the turn of the year.
Around 3,000 homes and businesses across the region were cut off from the water supply following a burst, with some homes affected for several days.
Yorkshire Water has been criticised for failing to communicate with consumers adequately following the incident, the water company apparently adopting a lax approach in its quest to spread awareness of bottled water supplies designed to compensate for the problem with the mains supply.
Whilst homeowners were rightly left feeling infuriated by the incident, it is in all likelihood the numerous small businesses hit by the burst that will end up feeling the consequences in the long-term.
The burst couldn’t have happened at a more devastating time for many businesses, with some restaurants and bars in the region left without water on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day. With many establishments relying upon custom at such peak times to tide them over through the dark days of January and February, the potential cost of not having access to water is clear for all to see.
Yorkshire Water, which has apparently been left having to repair more than 100 burst pipes per day since the Christmas period, has since apologised for the lack of communication but it may be some time yet before consumers put their faith back in the company.
Water on Wheels scheme launched in Lancashire
December 20, 2010 at 5:20 pm
Homeowners across Britain, particularly those who are vulnerable or live on their own, often worry about the potentially devastating consequences of losing water supply, even for a relatively short period of time. A water company in Lancashire has worked to ease concerns for those living in the region by unveiling a fleet of tankers worth £1 million and split between bases in Samlesbury and Bickerstaffe in a bid to keep the water flowing at all times.
The scheme, called Water on Wheels, is the brainchild of United Utilities and aims to ensure that no homeowner has to make do without water supply, even when emergencies or planned mains work put the main water supply at risk. The scheme relies upon nine Volvo articulated super-tankers, each of which can carry 30,000 litres of water and the tankers have already been put to good use since their launch, with those in the Blackburn, Accrington, and Preston areas of the region particularly thankful for the new scheme.
Colin McDermott, the Emergency Plant manager at United Utilities, revealed that the company are constantly striving to meet the expectations of those whose water they supply but the one thing that customers demand more than any other is, quite understandably, a steady and reliable supply of water. With significant bursts in the water network usually compromising the ability of said network to supply water, the tankers will now be able to pump around 2,400 litres each minute into the mains whilst the necessary repairs are being made by engineers.
Water firm admits water pollution
December 15, 2010 at 11:15 am
Dŵr Cymru, the Welsh water company, has been severely criticised by the Environment Agency after it emerged that they allowed untreated sewage to seep into Llyn Padarn lake in Llanberis, Gwynedd via the Afon Goch back in April of this year.
With the lake eventually flowing towards the sea mouth at Caernarfon, it’s not hard to see why this case is such a serious one for the water industry, but Dŵr Cymru seem to have escaped from the unfortunate incident relatively lightly, with the company handed a six month conditional discharge and a fine of just £3,800.
It is thought that the water firm were not treated as harshly as may have been the case as they pleaded guilty and the eventual consequences of the sewage leak were relatively minor; an investigation found that nothing died as a result of the lake pollution and the impact on users was minimal, since they were kept fully informed of the incident and the potential health risks resulting from it.
This case, although resolved through the final decision of the magistrate, is likely to continue to cause a fair amount of controversy in the months to come, with local angling associations still angry about the manner in which Dŵr Cymru apparently allowed the sewerage system in question to become so damaged and affected by time and general wear and tear that it ended up breaking.
One thing is for sure, though, and that’s the fact that the water firm is likely to be monitored closely over the coming months as the Environment Agency seek to gain both confirmation and reassurance that important lessons have been learned.
6 water firms miss leakage targets
December 6, 2010 at 2:06 pm
Six water companies have been mentioned in Ofwat’s annual report for having failed to hit their leakage targets. There are 21 companies in total, so the fact that six of them failed to hit their targets is quite worrying. However, there was some better news as Ofwat revealed that most of the companies provided a good service to consumers.
The worst offender was Yorkshire Water, which lost 295 million litres of water a day in the 2009/10 period. Other companies to miss their targets included Dee Valley, Northumbrian, Cambridge and Veolia Central.
The fact that so many companies missed their targets was made all the more surprising in view of the fact that every company has hit its targets for the last two years. Ofwat is surely going to be looking for answers as to why this year should have been so much worse.
One likely explanation is that the coldest winter in over 30 years is partly to blame. This led to areas of ground being covered by snow, which can make it more difficult to spot the leaks. Also, the action of freezing and thawing can cause ground movement which can burst the pipes.
Despite the excuse of the cold weather, Ofwat said that companies that fail to meet their leakage targets will have to improve. Water lost through pipe leakages is on such a vast scale that hitting the targets is a very serious issue. If the companies continue to fail to reach their targets then this could have serious repercussions for the whole of the UK if we are affected by any more droughts.
Thames Water to produce fertiliser from waste
October 21, 2010 at 4:48 am
Thames Water has announced that it will be starting up a new process of producing eco-friendly fertiliser from sewage. The process will take place in a waste water facility in Slough, and follows on from a successful experiment in North America.
The process involves recycling excess nutrients in the water into environmentally-safe fertiliser. It reuses natural resources as well as creating a product that is safe for the environment, leading many to dub it the perfect solution.
The Slough plant has been running a pilot scheme since March, and it will now go into full-scale production of the fertiliser. Thames Water will partner with Ostara Nutrient Recovery Technologies, a Canadian firm, and the facility should be up and running by the middle of 2011. The project will cost in the region of £2 million.
The process works by removing struvite from sewage which contains ammonia and phosphorus, and then converting this into natural fertiliser. This will be the first time the process has taken place in Europe. The plant will produce 150 tonnes of fertiliser a year, which will go by the name of Crystal Green and will be sold around the country.
On top of the benefits of the renewable product, Thames Water will also be saving £130,000 to £200,000 a year in chemical dosing costs which are necessary to clean up the build-up of struvite.
Reserves of phosphorus are running out around the world, with some experts predicting that mineral sources could run out completely in the next 30 years. This new technique could therefore become a very important way to produce a renewable solution to the problem.
Complaints about local water company double
October 15, 2010 at 3:01 am
Despite customer complaints about the service provided by Sutton and East Surrey Water company doubling in the last year, bosses at the company deny that the service they are providing is steadily worsening. With the company supplying water to around 270,000 customers, company bosses know that they are required to provide an outstanding service to the consumers they are responsible for, or else risk losing their custom to rival suppliers.
With other rival water companies managing to see the number of complaints they receive dropping, Sutton and East Surrey water company need to ensure that they can begin to improve the service they provide to ensure it is up to the standard of their closest rivals.
However, Customer Services Director Steve George has defended the service provided by Sutton and East Surrey water company, suggesting that the 2007 merger that took place between the two companies had a massive impact on the new structure of the supplier: “We had a massive challenge when two water companies merged to deliver a new in-house customer service centre, and have worked closely with the CCW to continually improve our service to customers since then”.
Whilst this may have been seen as a valid excuse even back in 2009, the fact that nearly three years have passed since the merger means that time is rapidly running out for this excuse to have any real resonance with consumers.
Having said all this, whilst the very notion of complaints doubling initially sounds like an extremely damaging claim, Sutton and East Surrey Water have been quick to suggest that this merely represents the number of complaints rising from 25 to 50, a figure which could surely look far worse in comparison to the number of customers they’re responsible for.
Thames release super sewer plans
October 13, 2010 at 2:45 am
Thames Water has released a 14-week public consultation on plans to build a super sewer at an estimated cost of £3.6 billion to reduce sewage discharges into the River Thames.
Backed by the government, the Thames tunnel will run for 20 miles at a depth of 75 metres. It will start in west London following the route of the river heading east of Tower Bridge.
But building the tunnel could result in bill increases of around £60-65 per year for Thames Water customers.
However, the environment secretary Caroline Spelman said that the tunnel offered “the most cost-effective solution” to the “unacceptable problem of raw sewage being regularly discharged into the Thames”.
Ms Spelman said that she recognised the tunnel came “at a significant cost” but that she would ensure the department for environment, food and rural affairs (DEFRA) and the water services regulation authority (OFWAT) “continue to scrutinise the costs” so that Thames Water’s proposals “represent proper value for money”.
London has trebled in size since 1850 and its Victorian sewer network is no longer big enough to cope with a 21st century city that is continuing to grow, said Thames Water.
And Thames Water explained that the 57 overflow points situated along the river were built during the 19th century to prevent sewage backing up into the streets when full. But now they discharge sewage into the Thames after just 2mm of rain which happens once a week on average.
Public exhibitions are currently being held across London until October 22 allowing Londoners to have their say on the plans for the tunnel. Construction of the tunnel is set to start in 2013 and end in 2020. For more information visit Thames Tunnel Consultation.
UK waters shown to be recovering from acid rain damage
October 1, 2010 at 2:31 pm
A report from the Acid Waters Monitoring Network (AWMN) has stated that waters in the UK are now beginning to recover from acid rain damage. Initial summaries of the report have, however, concluded that it will be many more years before all the surrounding plant and pond life are fully recovered.
Researchers have been keen to stress that this is only the beginning of the recovery and that there is still a large distance to go. The brown trout and salmon in the UK have started to re-appear in previously acidic sites but have not fully recovered from the acid rain damage to their populations, and nor has much of the affected plant life, insect species and snail populations.
Going further than this, Emeritus Professor Rick Battarbee, of UCL, who played a part in the research, said, “we still have a very long way to go to return these systems to full health, and there is real concern that a full recovery might be prevented by climate change.” For these reasons it has not yet been possible to predict when a full recovery can be expected, if at all.
Fears are rife that any significant climate change may affect recovery and this could mean further controls on dangerous gases need to be put in place. Research of this kind is likely to provide a further drive to Defra who are playing an important role in deals such as the EU National Emission Ceilings Directive and the Gothenburg Protocol.
The key policies for acid rain reduction were put into effect in the 1980s under Margaret Thatcher’s government and this new research has proved them to be successful. Discussing the recovery, environmental minister, Lord Henley, was also looking to the future and said that this “demonstrates the opportunity we have to build on this success through forthcoming international agreements that will allow us to return damaged rivers and lakes to a healthy state.”
The Acid Waters Monitoring Network is a Defra funded network of groups that has been responsible for research regarding acid rain damage throughout the UK. These groups were vital to the success of measuring change and the effectiveness of environmental policies. Professor Battarbee backed these sentiments adding that these reports “illustrate the importance of high quality, long-term ecological networks that we need to monitor, measure and model environmental change.”
