Water warning as heatwave goes on
HOUSEHOLDERS ARE URGED TO SAVE WATER AS HEATWAVE CONTINUES
WATER bosses are urging people to turn off their sprinklers and not have baths as they battle to keep up with huge demand in the sweltering temperatures.
Severn Trent has confirmed that, as the region is basking in the hottest June for 40 years, water usage is ‘massively up,’ so much so that it is leading to restricted supply at peak times.
With this in mind, the firm is asking customers to use water carefully to help avoid any issues with pressures dropping in the mornings and evenings.
Chiefs say that while reservoir levels are healthy, all water has to be treated before it is pumped into supply and as fast as it is being produced and put into supply, it is being used by customers.
This is leading to some properties suffering from low pressure.
Doug Clarke, water efficiency manager, explained: “Demand for water is massively up thanks to several weeks of extremely hot weather. While we have lots of water available and our reservoir levels are healthy and we’re putting millions of extra litres of water into the system, people are using water as fast as we can treat and pump it into supply.
“This is particularly the case during peak demand in the morning and evenings when we want to ask customers to restrict their supply so we can avoid areas of low pressure. We know how tempting it is to fill the paddling pool up, or get the sprinkler going, but to put things into perspective, a sprinkler can use as much as 1,000 litres of drinking water in just one hour. We urge everyone to play their part and be extra careful with their water, especially during peak times.”
The company has increased its production capacity by millions of extra litres a day, but it’s also asking to customers to be neighbourly and help to use their water carefully to try and prevent low pressure for their communities.
What to avoid Severn Trent are specifically asking people to:
Put their garden sprinklers away – a sprinkler can use as much as 1,000 litres of drinking water in just one hour – which is more water than a family of four would normally use in a whole day
Take a shower rather than a bath – It uses 40 litres less water and it’s quicker, which means you can get back out and enjoy the sunshine
Avoid washing their cars, but if they have to use a bucket and sponge rather than a hose. If you clean your car for 30 minutes you’ll use 50 times less water with a bucket instead of a hose