Stay home, save water

Water efficiency needs a message as simple to understand and follow as “stay home, save lives”, according to the head of the Environment Agency (EA).

Speaking at a parliamentary select committee on water supply and demand, James Bevan said there were lessons from the Covid-19 crisis in terms of the significant behavioural changes accepted by the public when the urgency of the issue was clearly communicated.

The EA chief executive admitted there was a lot yet to be done on water efficiency but assured the committee the work is in progress.

“Recent experience shows that you can change behaviour,” Bevan said. “The Covid episode shows that if you give people a simple message with a powerful effect then most people will follow it – like ‘stay home save lives’, it needs to be the same for Love Water.”

Speaking about the industry campaign launched last summer to increase public awareness around water he said further work would be announced soon, after months of planning.

“The ambition is that people genuinely do understand where that water comes from, understand how precious it is and that they have agency. Everybody can play a part in making sure that we have enough water for the next generation.”

This was echoed by Ofwat chief executive Rachel Fletcher, who said everybody has a responsibility to save water and regulators as well as the sector have a role to play.

Water supply has been catapulted into headlines this week as networks have struggled to keep up with demand in many areas.

Fletcher said a warning system to inform consumers of approaching issues with water supply could be implemented and praised companies that have such a measure in place.

“We do need to be giving customers early notice if there are short-term issues like this coming over the hill. Some companies have been more on the front foot than others to warm customers up to be careful with water,” Fletcher said.

She explained that water companies have been aware that demand patterns have “changed very radically in recent weeks” and that this has placed pressure on production and distribution systems.

Fletcher assured the committee that the sector was working collaboratively and sharing best practice through a crisis and it would provide a learning opportunity for other periods of prolonged dry weather, which will increasingly be the norm.

She added that despite the present situation “we cannot take our eye off the longer-term challenges” and the problems that will become more prominent due to climate change.

Bevan and Fletcher appeared alongside Tamara Finkelstein, the permanent secretary of Defra and Sally Randell, director of floods and water at Defra to answer questions from a parliamentary committee about the different organisations’ abilities to ensure water resilience.