Water Usage Tracking System Outdated, Experts Say

As water demand in England continues to gather pace, with supplies expected to outstrip demand by 40 per cent come 2050 and the country needing to find an additional five billion litres per day come 2055, tracking how and where water is being used will become increasingly important if appropriate water conservation solutions are to be introduced.

The current tracking system for England may no longer be fit for purpose, with significant accounting gaps now being seen for who is using water and how much they’re using, the Guardian reports.

For example, many users are not required to report water consumption, while those taking below 20 cubic metres per day (which is enough water to serve 140 people) don’t need to have an abstraction licence at all, so none of this is currently being tracked.

Speaking to the news source, Neil Entwistle – professor of river science and climate resilience at the University of Salford and head of science at Rebalance Earth – explained that budget cuts are only exacerbating the situation, which means that there are now fewer checks being carried out and it’s therefore easier for the system to be manipulated.

A representative from the Environment Agency made further comments, saying that many licences (particularly those in the agricultural industry) go unchecked, adding that although inspections by the agency have increased recently, the majority are “pointless” and “no one knows what’s really being used… if a farmer says they’ve used one litre all year, we wouldn’t be able to prove otherwise”.

Other systemic concerns include the fact that licences issued decades ago allow for abstraction of significantly higher volumes than would be permissible now, while other licences come with no set volume limits or expiry dates at all.

The fragmented system means that it’s difficult to ascertain total water use, with abstraction from different sources (rivers, aquifers, retailers, wholesalers, public mains and so on) tracked separately.

Concerningly, there also seem to be incentives to use large volumes of water, with industrial users often paying less per unit the more they use – something that will surely have to change in the future as pressure continues to mount on supplies around the country.

Chair of Water Resources East Daniel Johns told the news source: “Non-household customers pay less per cubic metre, the bigger their bulk tariff is. It sends all the wrong incentives. Bigger businesses should pay more and the extra income should be recycled back as grants.

“If water is made more expensive, you create a twin incentive to use less now and to invest in rainwater harvesting for the future. Water bills are immaterial compared with energy. If you’re a data centre choosing between energy-intensive air cooling and water cooling, you’re going to go for water every day of the week.”

What can businesses do to help?

You don’t need to rely on the Environment Agency or official tracking systems to find out how much water you use.

If you want to improve your water footprint and build resilience into your operational systems to mitigate the impact of supply interruption in the future, you can have a water audit of your site carried out that will give you all the information you need… and more.

Once you have greater visibility and control over your water accounts, you’ll be better able to identify the most appropriate water-saving solutions and efficiencies as you grow and change.

The process itself involves comparing water use including volumes against what you’ve been charged for. The aim here is to reveal any inconsistencies that could have led you being billed incorrectly. It’s possible that you could see a 30 per cent reduction in charges for water supply and wastewater disposal after an audit has been conducted.

What’s more, you could also be in line for refunds if you’ve been billed incorrectly in the past and it’s possible that you could achieve refunds of up to $500,000 for historical overcharges… so it’s certainly worth investigating!

The results of your audit are typically returned within seven to ten days, giving you a fuller picture of where you can save money on bills.

As well as saving money, it’s also worth noting that sustainable water management can help improve your brand reputation and ensure that consumers look upon you more favourably – something that is of increasing importance in today’s highly competitive business landscape.

If you’d like to find out more, get in touch with the SwitchWaterSupplier.com team today.