AIBU to be angry about hosepipe bans and whether people will comply?

So just to be clear, do you understand that the more water we take from the environment and the more water we have to treat, the more damage we do to the environment? And do you understand that and then still think you should be able to take an unlimited amount of a finite resource just because you paid for it? Because that's fucking stupid. We already use more water per person than any other European countries many of which are drier than ours. People need to understand it will run out. It is a finite resource. And we don't need as much we're using, people are wasting it.

Data centres often use environmental water not treated drinking quality water because that would be wasting a finite resource. I agree that data centres use an abhorrent amount of water but if you turn them off most industries would be fucked. We can't run a society without them anymore. But people can use less water, because the rest of Europe is already using less water than us and they're absolutely fine.

You just seem argumentative and like you're up for a fight tbh and clearly have the entitled attitude of I SHOULD BE ABLE TO USE AS MUCH AS I WANT. IM PAYING FOR IT AREN'T I!? So I am aware I'm wasting my time because you don't actually give a shit about the facts of the matter.

Not so easy with certain disabilities though. I use a sprinkler and a hosepipe and having had my ( very small) garden remodelled over the last 2 years I'm now loath to let my subsequent hard work (and money) go to waste. If Thames Water want my compliance then they should have spent their huge profits on fixing existing leaks.

Nothing left to say except personal attacks... oh dear😂

😆 🤣

Use a watering can, use bath water, only water important (to you) plants, forget about annual flowers unless you just have a small border. And make sure you have water butts for when it does rain.

I think you have touched a nerve!

The selfishness on this thread is something to behold. Like the people who keep their engines running in a heatwave because of the aircon. Petrol is still too cheap...

I am not vegan but I don't eat red meat. And dairy from local farms is better for the environment than vegan alternatives brought in from other countries.

It's also time people started buying plants that can survive dry summers (though I appreciate that doesn't help with the plants you've had for years, but water butts and watering cans exist and you can also use grey water from washing up etc).

Sadly, I suspect that none of the non compliers will read your post or care.

I am angry at the water companies mismanagement of resources, the undeserved bonuses that their CEOs receive and the fact that dividends for the shareholders come before providing a decent service.

MurunBuchstansangursCousinRossiter · Yesterday 17:02
I absolutely won’t comply.

However, the selfish non compliers like the above poster will make it worse for everyone if they continue to ignore requests to cut back on water usage. The "I'm alright Jack" attitude is no better than that of the water companies, which should never have been privatised in the first place.

There isn’t a hosepipe ban in our area but I can’t really see the problem with using a hose with a handheld trigger to water a pot? You put the nozzle near the roots and just use it on a gentle pressure for 10-20 seconds. It uses exactly the same amount of water as using exactly the same nozzle to fill the watering can and carry it to the pots.

I agree. This is how I water my plants.

There isn’t a hosepipe ban in our area but I can’t really see the problem with using a hose with a handheld trigger to water a pot? You put the nozzle near the roots and just use it on a gentle pressure for 10-20 seconds. It uses exactly the same amount of water as using exactly the same nozzle to fill the watering can and carry it to the pots. As soon as you let go of the trigger, the water stops flowing. At the end a small amount of water is still in the hose, which you can either leave there for next time or empty into the nearest plant.

We don’t have a sprinkler and would never, ever water the lawn or anything planted in the ground. That has always seemed a pointless exercise to me. Who cares if a lawn goes yellow for a while? It always recovers after the summer (even in the recent very dry summers when everything, even the trees, were yellow) and the garden is mostly large shrubs anyway. We live in a very wooded area and I can assure you that trees were not dying during those long dry periods!

Despite there being no hosepipe ban in my area I am happy to do my bit with some cooking and washing-up water re-use, but there is also the question of fairness. Google maps arial views shows me that quite a few people in my area have swimming pools. Why should it be ok for one family to have a pool, which I imagine needs topping up, yet another is supposed to avoid sensible hose usage, as described above?

I agree with conserving water but it all needs more nuance.

I feel the same. I've got an orchard as well as a variety of shrubs, spread out across my garden. I'm not about to let them wither.

double post

Why are you so special?

Ha for the first time in years and years we have just been told we will have a ban.

So ill top up the pool tonight and fill all my butts 😜

As I expect everyone else will as well reading the comments on the local paper. There was also a lot of they can fuck off I pay my direct debit comments. As well as all the exemptions being post.

Nope. I will be having my sprinkler on every other day.

Yes similar, we have no lawn, its patio but I have over 100 pots, Ive just been watering them with the hose and there is a ban here. I could hear two neighbours outside as well so someone will wonder if they can report me. But as I said upthread, I applied for an exemption, we are on the priority user list. I cant use a watering can due to my hands and I use the same amount of water as a can anyway as in the past Ive tried it that way, but rather than take half hour which is what its just taken me, it would take about an hour.

I agree with you OP and the other posters talking about the greed of water companies. I am not going to water my lawn, but I have a big garden and a meadow full of bees and there is no way I am going to carry a watering can around it all. I have a water butt so water as much as I can with watering can. I won’t let my garden die. It’s a haven for insects, I have planted fruit trees this year too and it would be worse for nature if we left it to die.

You are welcome

everyone needs those 1000 liters industrial water contrainers, and use them when needed

This sounds great. Would you mind telling me more about what dippers and equipment you bought to set this up please, maybe on this thread? https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/ethical_living/5552567-positive-action-on-water-conservation

Here you go!

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/ethical_living/5552567-positive-action-on-water-conservation

All practical suggestions welcome!