Water Reuse Highlighted As Top Conservation Solution

Despite the fact that the UK is renowned around the world for its damp and rainy climate, we too face water stress and scarcity risks, with flooding and drought both expected to become increasingly problematic as time goes on and the climate crisis deepens all around us.

Some five million people each year are affected by such extreme weather events around the country and it’s predicted that the number and cost of damage will rise in the future as a direct result of climate change.

As important as it is to mitigate the effects of climate change and do all we can to keep global warming to a minimum as far as is practicably possible, it’s also just as important for us to adapt to the evolving world and make sure that the UK is resilient to the impacts that climate change will inevitably bring with it.

This means protecting both water quantity and water quality, safeguarding resources for future generations and taking steps now to ensure that demand doesn’t outstrip supply… particularly given stark warnings from the Environment Agency that demand for water could start to outstrip supply in just ten short years’ time.

And come 2050, it’s predicted that an additional five billion litres of water will be needed each day in order to support a growing population, food production and the economy, as well as protecting the environment.

So how exactly can we meet this particularly daunting challenge?

Naturally, there is no single solution that can be adopted and it will be necessary to combine various different approaches, but one of the top strategies currently being suggested by the government’s National Infrastructure Commission(NIC) is to build more reservoirs.

The NIC is calling for new water infrastructure to be built to supply at least 1,300 megalitres per day, to address the fact that no new reservoirs have been built for over 30 years.

However, this may not necessarily be the most effective course of action, with water experts Kevin Grecksch of the University of Oxford and Kirsty Holstead of Wageningen University in the Netherlands suggesting that a better option would be to prioritise water reuse and drive down demand instead.

In an article for The Conversation, the specialists explained that there are now plans in place for ten new reservoirs around England, as well as water transfer schemes, but whether these reservoirs will ever reach completion is under question, as construction is expensive and highly regulated, with fierce local opposition often present.

A worthy alternative to reservoir construction is water reuse to reduce reliance on surface and groundwater resources, potentially going a long way to tackle water scarcity by catching and filtering rainwater, or cleaning water that would usually be viewed as waste.

Water reuse strategies have already proved successful in places like Sydney, California, Beijing and Melbourne… but according to a European Commission report from 2017, just 0.08 per cent of urban wastewater in the UK was reused, compared to 97 per cent in Cyprus.

As well as water reuse, reducing demand for water in the first place would help protect resources. The UK’s per capita water consumption is one of the highest in Europe, so prioritising demand management could actually go a long way towards shoring up supplies.

In Denmark, a country that sees similar levels of rain to England, has succeeded in reducing water usage and consumption through a variety of different means, including technology like water-efficient taps, showers and toilets, water metering and public awareness campaigns… so there’s certainly no real reason why the same wouldn’t work here, given time.

How can businesses help?

Businesses are particularly well placed to make a significant and positive impact when it comes to reducing pressure on water supplies.

Firstly, having a water audit of your site carried out will show you how and where you’re using water, so you can identify the most appropriate water-saving solutions for you, those that will save the most water – and save you the most money into the bargain.

Finding weak and vulnerable areas on your premises means you know where best to focus your attention first, preventing wasted effort and allowing you to have the biggest impacts more immediately.

From there, you can start raising awareness of the water crisis among your workforce, encouraging people to think about their own personal habits where water is concerned.

If you’d like to find out more about how to be more sustainable in your approach to water as a business, get in touch with the SwitchWaterSupplier.com team today.