Kentish Express Ashford & District
Hundreds more water meters
Hundreds of homes across Ashford are set to have new water meters installed.
It’s part of South East Water’s programme to install meters in as many homes as possible.
Pipe surveying work is due to start in the autumn in the town and surrounding areas.
Customers will be told in advance when their meter will be fitted. The company’s 10-year Customer Metering Programme aims to have 90% of homes on metered charges by 2020.
Oluseyi Onifade, South East Water’s metering manager, said: “By moving to a water meter, customers will be able to see exactly how much water they use. Just making small changes to reduce wasted water can make a lot of difference.
“Once we i ntroduce t he metered charge, customers only pay for what they use – like they do with gas and electricity – so it’s a fairer way to pay.”
The metering programme has been progressing through Kent on a street by street basis. It was introduced because the south east of England has been classed by the Environment Agency as a ‘water-stressed’ region, meaning the precious resource must be managed carefully to make sure there is enough water to meet future needs.
By 2020 South East Water will have installed 375,000 water meters across its supply area of Kent, Sussex, Surrey, Hampshire and Berkshire.
The company says water meters help manage demand in water stressed areas as they help detect leaks.
Oluseyi Onifade added: “Research also shows customers with a water meter use 15% less water than those who are unmetered as it encourages people to think about how they use water.”
More information, including a water bill calculator which will help customers to estimate the difference between their old rateable value and new metered bills can be found at southeastwater. co.uk