The value of water.
 

Certain parts of our soggy, green and pleasant land are, surprisingly, facing the second year of a drought. Indeed so serious has the situation beome that some parts of the South East are said to have less supplies of drinking water per capita than Morocco!

The solution proposed by the Water Companies is to apply to the government for permission for compulsory installation of water meters. Which means that they can charge for every drop used and rake in bundles of extra revenue.
For once, it is single people and pensioners, who use much less water, who will benefit through lower bills. Dover and Folkestone Water, the first company to be granted permission to install water meters, says that this is a fairer way to pay for water; those who use most, pay most. And I have to say that, in principle, I am in broad agreement with the idea. But that is not how it will work in practice, is it? Low income families with herds of kids, who use water as though it merely fell from the heavens, will be on the recieving end of state assistance, as usual. And, as usual, it is every one of us who will end up paying through the nose, via taxation, for their profiligate use of an increasingly precious resource.

What is worse, there will be no additional responsibility placed on the water companies to ensure that they collect more rain in future or that they repair the leaking infrastructure of water mains to prevent a widening of this ludicrous situation.

Re: The value of water.
 

I dont think you will get any help paying your water bill if you are on benefits. They dont now, so i cant see them doing so in the future.

Do you have a water meter Bob ?

The last new build i lived in we had one. The water company demanded approx 30.00 a month DD for me and Alec. They said if i got into credit it would be adjusted the year after. Yea right !!!
I took a water reading and rang back after a month, i used the water as normal and i only used something like 6 pounds in one month but they wasnt prepared to let me pay that.

Sorry but in my opinion ...the water company is a rip off !.

Oh and im 90% sure that we still have lead pipes for our water !!! i remember getting a letter from either the council or the water board asking if we wanted them changed, we the tennant had to pay for it !!!!!

Re: The value of water.
 

Not at home, but the bakery has to have one. We use quite a lot of water but, oddly, the water rate for the year was only a couple of pounds different from the bill I had to play for the council flat I have just vacated; yet another good reason for getting out of Huncoat.

Re: The value of water.
 

The joys of living in the affluent south east nae water for drinking lawns cars and swimming pools. What a hard life not. They are proberly more able to afford it than those in the north. Any water we flog them should be taxed at a premium as it is as vital to them as gas and petrol. :D

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bullocks to the waterboard ime sneaking into teh sports center for free showers and if that fails theres always the river stink :D

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At least the Stinks cleaner than the rain that hits my napper up in my neck of the woods. :)

Re: The value of water.
 

I must agree with most of the comments, but the real culprits are the water companies themselves, we read how pipework can be 100 years old and the water companies are themselve responsible for more wastage, more than any of their customers, through leakage. The solution is to invest in new pipework where required.
If the water, a natural resource, is allowed to be charged at unworkable rates, people will use less, flush the tiolet less, sewers will not be flushed and that in itself could create more problems.
Privatisation should not be an excuse to run down established businesses and then complain that they can't afford to invest to run the business correctly.

Re: The value of water.
 

To add insult to injury, the water companies reckon that each water meter will cost about £200 - and guess where that's coming from? Yes, the consumer. What's more, in London the water from the tap is undrinkable. It is flat, warm, cloudy, and tastes disgusting (it's no wonder the beer's not great). Like a great many people here, I buy bottled water. At least in Ossy I can turn the tap on and get a glass of clear, fresh, cold water that tastes proper.

Re: The value of water.
 

There are, of course, water leaks that are not being identified, but AIUI the amount of water lost through leaks in the Dover & Folkstone area, is minimal.

Where there has been a lack of investment is in the creation of reservoirs.

Re: The value of water.
 

Yet another excuse for the expense to be laid at the door of the consumer.

Whilst not averse to water meters, we'd probably save as there's 2 of us in our house and we're both very conservation minded, I do not agree with their compulsary fitment.

The issue in Kent has set a precedent for other councils to give the authority for water providers in their area to do likewise.

Investment in reservoirs, rainwater catchment and better pipework is what is needed.

I must remember to get some shares in utility companies ;)

Re: The value of water.
 

If all the water leaks were sorted out effectively then there would be no shortage of water. I don't know if anyone else has noticed it but there has been a persistent water leak near Morrisons in Blackburn for as long as I can remember.......Now I know the river Blakewater runs somewhere in that district......but I don't think the leak is from there. Many attempts have been made to cure the problem.....but it always comes back. It grieves me to see water running down the grates.

Re: The value of water.
 

so if a poor family cant afford to put money into the meter one week does that family have to go without water...?

i thought there were laws about everyone been given water as a basic human need

Re: The value of water.
 

I thought I'd be better off if I had a water meter.

I called the relevant number on my water bill, and was then told for about fifteen minutes that it wasn't really that good an idea, but begrudgeingly they'd send me a leaflet about it.

Apathy then struck, and I still don't have my water metered.

Re: The value of water.
 

Its a good job the electricity companies don't treat electricity the same way as the water companies. Just imagine the outcry if you had to cross the road through a puddle of electricity leaking from an underground cable.
What about gas? Do the gas mains leak like the water ones do?

Re: The value of water.
 

Not if profits come first it aint.

Re: The value of water.
 

Re: The value of water.
 

Is there not a way that water companys could filter sea water so as to be drinkable?

Re: The value of water.
 

Yes the same way the Saudis do with desalination plants. Only problem is the cost wich we would have to bare. Mind you if the southern tribe can drink bottled water daily then they wont mind paying the equivilent per litre. :)

Re: The value of water.
 

Really? :)

If your on benefits you can have your water bill capped. a limit is set and no matter how much water you use, you would not have to pay over that amount.

I have been on a water meter for around 15 years and I know this as a fact from experience. Although not on benefits now I do know others who have there bill capped after learning of it from when I had to go down that road. So its still possible now.

Re: The value of water.
 

I don't like having to pay twice for my water, but the tap stuff is truly undrinkable. I know it's clean, but a lot of it is recycled, so my nice glass of drinking water was somebody's bath water a few days back - not a nice thought, is it? I buy water from Tesco at 44p for 2 litres, under protest. You might well do the same, Spuggie J, if your only other choice was recycled bathwater - so heavily chlorinated to remove the bugs that it tastes of nothing but chemicals.

AND I object to being called a SOUTHERNER - what an insult to a true Lancashire lass!!!

Re: The value of water.
 

I don't get this and when something's so glaringly obvious I always wonder if it's me just being thick.

Surely, if they put in water meters it won't actually reduce the water use - I know it wouldn't actually stop me from having a shower every morning and a cup of coffee with my lunch. I certainly wouldn't switch the radiators off to use less. So how exactly will that help at all? If they were saying that they were unprofitable then yes put in meters but don't hide behind a silly excuse that meters will cure the problem of a water shortage.

If we are running out of water - dig out more reservoirs - surely that's logical?

Re: The value of water.
 

Gayle better watch what you are saying. Build a reservoir on land that could be used for nice housing now that is scandless. ;) They build all this housing and plan roads etc to cope but cannot grasp the fact that you cant give 80 people a pint of water from 1 gallon.

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Then in that case I'm sure some clever scientisty chap or chapess could come up with a system that every house or street collected emergency rain water supplies and chemically processed it.

Re: The value of water.
 

Very good point but then what would the cost be for that? Will stick to showering at work and drinking their water. They can afford the bills. :D