To think it is the water companies that need to conserve water, not householders?

[7ofNine]

FFS, it's June 2nd, and already had a text from my water company asking for "my help to keep demand down in my area" by not using sprinklers or hoses.

AIBU to think they should work on the 30-50% of water they lose from the system every year instead of harassing 'customers'?
FWIW I have no garden or balcony, so I don't use sprinklers or hosepipe anyway!
Plus we all turn off the tap while brushing teeth etc, don't waste water wherever we can.

I believe Moondust001 has it. Climate change, heavy population of certain areas, overuse (we consider the UK to be a 'wet' country so don't consider how much water we use), wastage (both ours and the water companies'), no new reservoirs in years, land use that stops water draining into the ground (which also exacerbates flooding). All of these contribute. I thought this article explained some of the factors pretty well:
www.bbc.com/future/article/20190310-why-britains-rain-cant-sustain-its-thirst

I think YABU. It did rain loads in February but levels haven't been topped up since then really. The reservoir near us which is used by water companies is low.

We are not on mains water, we have a well and so we are very aware of dry periods and how it affects water supply because we actually risk running out! We have been frugal with water for weeks. Thankfully, it's raining today and we have a few days forecast. The water then takes 5-7 days to enter the well as it has to filter down to the water table first.

I don't think I thought about it much when I was in a place with mains water but since moving to my current home, it really does make you think.

Our water is metered. Apparently we use far less than average despite watering the garden each night and having a small pool (we don’t refill it daily and do use the water for the garden). So what are people who use much more than average doing with it? I know a few will have disabilities etc that require much more water. But we’re being compared to the average family our size so it isn’t just that...

One of the rivers in the Lake District that regularly floods has completely dried up.

It's unheard of.

That's why they are talking about limiting use. It's everyone's responsibility.

I can recall water shortages being mentioned if Brexit went tits up - a whole complex mesh of import problems, labour problems, plus a general sense of uncertainty.

I wonder if this is just a manifestation of the same issues ? That is a clear sign that having banked eye (if not country) watering profits for decades, the dirty secret is our water companies simply aren't able to cope with the smallest change to anything ?

@DelurkingAJ
same here. our waterbills were half when we were switched to a meter.
4 people, regular baths/showers, garden. admittedly we have water saving appliances (new washer & dishewasher and we actually use the eco programmes)

what do people actually do to use that much water?

I think we should all be using less water, and the other day most of our town had barely any. But my sis had same prob in another area with a different water company. However at the beginning of the week there was water gushing out of a water main in the street and running down the road.....and it happens quite a lot. Some of my friends have bought a swim training pool for their garden though, I dread to think how much water that uses!!

YABU, they write one letter to the whole area, not individual letters to every property. So, it doesn't matter whether your property has a garden or balcony, some in the area will.
Asking to be frugal with water in the summer is sensible.

Are you with United Utilities by any chance OP? They are fucking shit.

We had water shortages in my area last year when it was very hot. The water company wrote to us explaining that although there was enough water, they couldn't treat it fast enough to keep up with demand (hoses for watering, pools etc). It's not as simple as having lots of rain early in the year so there shouldn't be a shortage.

I'm in London and I think it's rained twice since lockdown. Many people are at home and gardening, using paddling pools etc.

Are you with United Utilities by any chance OP? They are fucking shit

We're in a different area with another water company. Weve been asking to be put on a meter for about 2 years. They came and identified where it would go outside the house....and havent been in touch again! My NDN suggested it as pays about half as much as we do (although he does live alone) ....but he has a sprinkler on for hours most days over the summer

Sorry, like poor @AgeLikeWine I'm with Severn Trent.

Of course, it's raining today...

You are all talking about surface water. In many areas its groundwater which has been over exploited and has not recovered from low water over the last decade. Waters a finite resource, only 3% of the water in the world is fresh.

I think everyone should conserve water, not just companies, not just households.

We don't need hot tubs. Irrigation systems are not necessary in domestic gardens. They aren't necessary on golf courses. We need to get used to using less, or pay more for water storage.

Someone up thread said that the last reservoir was built in 1980. In fact Carsington Water in the Severn Trent region was built in 1989 and was first flooded in 1992.

The largest reservoir in the UK Kielder was built in the 80s.

A new one was being built in London this century, I am not sure if it is complete yet.

Building new reservoirs is a massive undertaking, it isn't straightforward. It isn't just the cost but the space, the disruption, the infrastructure, the homes lost, the people displaced.

Wouldn't it be better if we just decided that hot tubs and swimming pools aren't necessary at home and watered the garden with a watering can.

What Moondust said, plus there's a limited number of engineers and all in the world for building and repairing more infrastructure, so new reservoirs take a while.

The largest reservoir in the UK Kielder was built in the 80s.

I vaguely recall reading ages ago that it poured away enough fresh water a day to solve the drought crisis in the SE forever.

I'm fortunate enough to live in a city that wasn't run by arseholes and decided over a century ago that it would need a lot of fresh water if it were to grow. So the municipal corporation actually went and secured that supply which today means Birmingham (certainly my bit) doesn't suffer water shortages at all.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elan_Valley_Reservoirs

That is what proper civic planning looks like, in case anyone was curious these days.

(Diolch i bobl Cymru)