Interview with Toby Willison of Southern Water. As heard on V2 Radio:

Why everyone wins when you save water

Saving water benefits everyone. As well as reducing your bills and making sure everybody has enough, it can cut carbon and protect the environment. The best part? It’s easy to do. Discover the simple changes and free water-saving gadgets you can use. It all makes a difference.

More people and less water

In the South East, we live in a water-stressed area. The local population is growing and climate change is bringing hotter summers and more extreme weather, which means our water sources are being topped up less often. As a result, we have more people and less water.

We’re not the only ones who rely on these water sources either. Many people’s water comes from local rivers. If we take too much, plants and wildlife could be harmed. So, saving water makes sure there’s enough to round, while protecting precious habitats.

Summer is on its way, and that brings challenges too. When the weather is hot, demand soars. But water has to be treated before it comes out of your tap. If everyone uses too much at once, treating it fast enough can be a challenge. We can’t afford to waste it.

It all makes a difference

Fortunately, everyone can help by using water wisely. It all makes a difference:

• If you’re putting the kettle on, only fill it with the amount you need.
• Wait until you have a full load before you press ‘go’ on your washing machine or dishwasher.
• When you need to freshen up, take a short shower instead of filling the bathtub.

As well as saving water, these all save energy too – reducing your bills and your carbon footprint.

The ways to save water around the home are countless. If you like gadgets, you can try GetWaterFit – our interactive water-saving calculator. You could also have up to £100 of water-saving devices fitted in your home – for free – by booking one of our water-saving home visits.

Our aim is to help customers reduce their use to 100 litres per person, per day – we call it Target 100. Alongside sharing tips and tools to help you get there, we’re doing our bit to reduce waste.

Playing our part

While you reduce your household use, we’re working to reduce leakage by 15% by 2025 and 40% by 2040. Alongside finding and fixing leaks, we’re also exploring new water sources – such as desalination to make salty seawater drinkable, and water recycling to keep water in our network. If we all play our part, together, we can make sure there’s enough water to go round. 

To learn more and discover extra ways to save, head to southernwater.co.uk/save-water.