Archived press release

YORKSHIRE WATER BRANDED YORKSHIRE'S BIGGEST WASTER'

8 August 1996

Yorkshire Water PLC was branded Yorkshire's biggest waster' by Friends of the Earth today [8 August] for threatening wildlife while wasting water and wasting the chance to bring more jobs to the area.

New research by FOE [1] reveals that if Yorkshire Water invested 27 million (just 14 per household) in water conservation measures in Yorkshire it would save a staggering 69 thousand million litres of water a year. Instead Yorkshire Water makes 389,000 profit a day and allows enough water to leak from its pipes for every household in the region to have 9 showers a day. This results in potentially environmentally damaging schemes such as the Kielder transfer to bring water from Northumbria to Yorkshire being developed [2].

The problems faced by wildlife could be eased through water conservation measures which could also generate up to 50 per cent more jobs than developing new water resources - such as river transfers [3]. The costs of measures such as fixing leaks are also cheaper than building reservoirs.However, if Yorkshire water continues to give its huge profits to shareholders rather than invest them in water conservation measures nothing will change.

Matt Phillips of Friends of the Earth said: "These wasters are destroying wildlife. Water conservation brings more jobs, saves money for businesses, saves water and helps the environment. Yorkshire Water is required by law to promote conservation measures. All they've done is waste money and preach to us about our behaviour. It's time for them to get their own house in order and make cuts in the demand for water."

"There's no better way for water companies to save water than fixing leaks.There is no shortage of cost effective conservation measures that could be implemented that would lead to us all saving water with little effort.Fourteen pounds a household is just a drop in the ocean to these profiteers but would make a great difference to the environment."

ENDS

NOTES TO EDITORS:

[1] Friends of the Earth. (1996). Alternatives to the Kielder Transfer Scheme. Friends of the Earth, London. A briefing with details of water saving measures can be faxed through on request.

Jobs would come, for example, from Yorkshire Water fitting business customers' urinals with water savers. This would save 72 tcmd (thousand cubic metres a day) of water and bring about 80 jobs. But because the costs could be recoverable within a year, this would cost businesses and Yorkshire Water absolutely nothing. As a result it should install them for free, recovering the costs from bills.

Free cistern inserts that hygienically fill with water called hippo bags'sit in the cistern, are foolproof to install and save 19.4 litres/household/day at a cost of just 13p each.

A free water butt and device to divert water from drainpipes would cost a water company about 10 each - enabling gardeners to use the 45,000 litres a year that falls on the average roof in their gardens - rather than watering with drinking water in hosepipes.

Reducing water pressure by even a modest amount reduces the amount of water leaked from pipes at a cost of less than 2 per household.

Water companies giving free water audits for the region's 50 biggest businesses will save each customer up to 40% of its water (and the same amount from its water bill) at a cost of up to 20,000 per audit.

A shower uses 45 litres less water than a bath. Water companies could give customers who want a shower grants towards installation and interest free loans recoverable from bills as well as giving away free low water use shower heads.

[2] The 40 million Kielder transfer link threatens Yorkshire's rivers with an invasion of the aggressive Signal crayfish, with the spread of fish diseases and pollution. MacGuire, F. (1996). Environmental Threats from the Kielder Transfer Scheme. Friends of the Earth, London.

[3] Environment Canada and Department of Economics. (1996). The Economic Impacts of Water Conservation. Department of Economics,McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada.

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Published by Friends of the Earth Trust