Archived press release

SE housing developments should be 'water neutral'

22 June 2006

The South East's decision makers must insist that new housing developments in drought-threatened areas are water neutral, Friends of the Earth said today. The call coincides with the South East Water Resources Forum's conference on water scarcity in the region, which is being held today (Thursday).[1]

Friends of the Earth's call for water neutral housing developments, is one of five demands published in a new report today. The report, Running on Empty: Water in the South East [1], says that much more must be done to tackle the region's water crisis.

Friends of the Earth South East Campaigns Co-ordinator, Brenda Pollack, said:

"The region is rapidly drying up, but we are still not seeing enough action to conserve water. The Government seems hell bent on building half a million more houses in the South East, but is dragging its feet over the standards needed to make sure that housing uses water as efficiently as possible.

"Urgent action is needed to tackle the water crisis. The Regional Assembly can play a vital role in this by insisting that any new developments in water-scarce areas must be water-neutral. Unless we take firm action, the situation will get worse."

The briefing sets out the following 5 key actions

1. Make new homes water neutral - and review housing figures. New homes built in the region must be constructed to the highest environmental standards. New developments in highly water-stressed areas must be `water neutral'. As well as ensuring that new homes are fitted with highly water-efficient appliances, developers should be obliged to `offset' the water their developments use by paying for water saving equipment to be installed in existing houses. The result would be that there would be no net increase in water use caused by the new development. [3]

   The Government must also urgently review its expansion plans. A closer look needs to be taken at the impact on the environment including scarce water resources.

2. Mend leaky pipes - there is still too much water being lost through leaking pipes. Southern Water loses 92 million litres of water a day through leakage. Thames Water is the worst culprit, losing an average of 915 million litres a day from their pipes.

3. Prioritise Water reduction. People should be encouraged to use less water at home, work, school and everywhere. Simple things such as turning the tap off while brushing teeth, using grey water (water which has been used once but not contaminated, such as washing-up water), and fitting water saving devices in toilets and other domestic appliances.

4. New water infrastructure should only be built as a last resort. New infrastructure (such as desalination plants and new reservoirs) should be seen as a last resort. Desalination plants and piping water across regions could take a lot of energy and emit huge amounts of carbon dioxide. They are also very expensive and these costs would be passed on to the consumer.

5. Address climate change - start reducing CO2 emissions 3% year on year. Predictions of hotter drier summers will mean things are likely to get worse if damaging greenhouse gas emissions are not cut. Action must be taken now in order to reduce the severity of future water shortages. Friends of the Earth is calling for a new climate law as part of The Big Ask climate campaign. Se www.thebigask.com

Notes

2. Friends of the Earth South East's response to the public consultation on the SE Plan puts this proposal to the Government.

If you're a journalist looking for press information please contact the Friends of the Earth media team on 020 7566 1649.

Published by Friends of the Earth Trust