
We need to be more water aware and we need to use water wisely, or we risk placing parts of this country under severe water stress.
Last March, the Environment Agency warned that the UK could see water shortages by 2050 if action is not taken to conserve supplies. Collectively, the UK sends a fifth of its water supply down the drain and the average consumer in England and Wales uses 142 litres of water a day.
But the responsibility for tackling this doesn't solely lie with water providers. With water management being revamped in response to the climate crisis, now is the time for collaboration across industries, government and down to every individual in the UK. It boils down to two points: we need to be more water aware and we need to use water wisely, or we risk placing parts of this country under severe water stress.
Today marks the start of Water Saving Week. It's a time to celebrate this natural resource but also, more pressingly, to raise awareness of its scarcity and the issues around water use and to share solutions for saving water and maintaining its efficient use.
A smart solution how we're helping the industry Every day, 2.9 billion litres of water are lost to leakages. This makes up an astounding 20% of the public water supply. Leakages mean more water needed in the network, and more energy required to process and transport that water.
This is where smart water metering has become integral. AMI smart water meters collect and present data in near real-time, meaning households and businesses can be much better informed about their water consumption.
In 2020, Thames Water reported that customers with smart meters were using around 17% less water than those without, while Anglian Water Services predicted an 18% reduction in consumption in its forward investment plans thanks to smart metering.
Combatting the climate crisis Smart metering technology also has a vital role to play in helping the UK meet its net zero targets and ultimately, tackle the climate crisis. According to joint analysis from Arqiva and Waterwise, of the UK's total greenhouse gas emissions, 6% are estimated to arise through household water supply and use. Of these, 90% relate to water use in the home. The remaining 10% comes from water companies supplying water and removing and treating wastewater. Our calculations reveal that fitting one million smart water meters in the UK each year for the next 15 years could save one billion litres of water a day by the mid-2030s. In turn, this could reduce the UK's current greenhouse gas emissions by up to 0.5%.
So, what's next?
Moving metering to the mainstream Calling for a mandate for the universal rollout of smart water meters by 2035 is the first step towards preventing water shortages. The good news is that this is both achievable and realistic based on current technology and services. On top of this, there's an urgent need to develop policies which support, rather than hinder, progress towards reducing water use, waste and tackling the associated carbon emissions.
As we approach COP26, the government and broader industry has a golden opportunity to improve cooperation on water supply issues, ensuring that environmental and sustainability measures are at the heart of policy going forward. In its journey to achieving net zero by 2030, the water industry and wider society are faced with the challenge of securing the UK's current and future water supply. It's ambitious, but the industry is committed to protecting and enhancing the environment and intends to be part of the solution to the climate crisis. This week is a perfect moment of reflection next time you're in the shower or brushing your teeth, remember we can all take action to save water.
Published
17/05/2021
Author
John Lillistone, Director of Utilities, Arqiva
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
02/05/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
01/05/2026
January 5 2026, 18:30 (PST) NBCUniversal's Peacock to Be First Streamer to ...
01/04/2026
January 4 2026, 18:00 (PST) DOLBY AND DOUYIN EMPOWER THE NEXT GENERATON OF CREATORS WITH DOLBY VISION
Douyin Users Can Now Create And Share Videos With Stun...
18/02/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
18/02/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
18/02/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
18/02/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
18/02/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
18/02/2026
Good Luck, Have Fun, Don't Die in theaters February 2026 Photo courtesy of Graham Bartholomew, SMPSP
James Whitaker, ASC reunited with visionary director G...
18/02/2026
TAG Video Systems has expanded its Media Control System (MCS) version 1.7.0 release with Lens, a visual service health analysis interface that organizes monitor...
18/02/2026
Teradek, a global leader in advanced video transmission technology, today announced the launch of RF-X Auto Switcher, a revolutionary appliance designed to deli...
18/02/2026
Train Dreams. (L-R) Director of Photography Adolpho Veloso and Joel Edgerton as Robert Grainier on the set of Train Dreams. Cr. Daniel Schaefer/BBP Train Dreams...
18/02/2026
Cerberus Tech, a leader in cloud-native IP video contribution and distribution, today announced the addition of Akamai Cloud as a supported infrastructure optio...
18/02/2026
Leading video software provider, Synamedia, today announced that Office de Radio et T l vision des Comores (ORTC), the national public broadcaster for the Comor...
18/02/2026
Calibr-Skaggs and Kainomyx launch collaboration to pioneer novel malaria treatments Partnering to speed up the discovery of new malaria drugs that target parasi...
17/02/2026
Eutelsat announces the renewal of multiple capacity agreements with Viewsat, rei...
17/02/2026
At Milano Cortina 2026, one statistic stood out across industry reporting: 70% of global signal distribution is now happening over public cloud. What began as e...
17/02/2026
CP Communications provided broadcast support for Super Bowl LX in Santa Clara, Calif. at Levi's Stadium, marking 27 years of working around the Big Game. Th...
17/02/2026
Street-level images of iconic Los Angeles landmarks are incorporated into the regular-season look
With NBC Sports just months into its return to NBA coverage a...
17/02/2026
Sophie Hyde and John Lithgow backstage during the premiere of Jimpa. (Photo by George Pimentel / Shutterstock for Sundance Film Festival)...
17/02/2026
Johannesburg, 17 February 2026 - The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), ...
17/02/2026
A Green Beret hangs a 60mm mortar round from a M225A mortar system on a live-fire range. (Photo credit: U.S. Army)...
17/02/2026
AI Is Scaling Faster Than Governance And That's a Risk AI adoption hasn't rolled out through neat transformation programmes. It has spread organically...
17/02/2026
Cable Surges 9% on Strength of College Football Playoffs and News, while NFL Delivers Top 15 Broadcast Telecasts
ESPN (+86%) and FOX News Channel (+17%) Combin...
17/02/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
17/02/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
17/02/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
17/02/2026
As the FCC explores a potential clawback of Upper C-Band spectrum currently used for broadcast distribution, BCNEXXT is working with broadcasters and operators ...
17/02/2026
India is entering a new age of industrialization, as AI transforms how the world...
17/02/2026
Agentic AI is reshaping India's tech industry, delivering leaps in services ...
17/02/2026
India is the nexus of AI innovation this week as the host of the AI Impact Summit, which brings together global heads of state and industry to chart the future ...
17/02/2026
17 Feb 2026
VEON and Hala to Explore Partnership in Ride-Hailing Services Dubai, February 17, 2026 - VEON Ltd. (Nasdaq: VEON), a global digital operator ( VEON...
17/02/2026
Qube Cinema announces the acquisition of the business of Arts Alliance Media (AA...
17/02/2026
Back to All News
Unveiling What's Next on Netflix for Australia and New Zealand in 2026
Entertainment
17 February 2026
GlobalAustraliaNew Zealand
Link ...
17/02/2026
Back to All News
WBD Files Definitive Proxy Statement and Schedules Special Mee...
17/02/2026
Arvato Systems Once Again Named One of Germany's Best IT Service Providers.
The best IT service providers in 2026
G tersloh - Arvato Systems is once ag...
17/02/2026
Open the report
Our 2025 report brings together results from 155 consumer magazine titles across 42 market sectors, published by 59 media owners. Over the year...
17/02/2026
Celebrating 21 Years of the RT Choice Music Prize
RT Choice Music Prize
In association with IMRO and IRMA
Classic Irish Album
And the winning album is
T...
17/02/2026
RT has today announced that as part of its public-service remit, it will expand...
16/02/2026
The production infrastructure scaled seamlessly from regular-season games to the...
16/02/2026
The operations team reimagined traditional workflows were reimagined and built a...
16/02/2026
Once again an in-house operation, the league's network is producing shows fr...
16/02/2026
The league is producing its first All-Star with NBC, Intuit Dome, and, once agai...
16/02/2026
When a customer in London needed a 4K video wall that could take 12G input, the media company found no video wall suppliers that could meet their specs and time...
16/02/2026
Grass Valley, a media and entertainment technology innovator, has won a competitive NATO-wide tender to provide the new camera system for NATO's main broadc...
16/02/2026
Comcast Business announces it is again partnering with NBCUniversal to architect and manage critical components of the linear and digital broadcast for three of...
16/02/2026
Week two of the 2026 Milano Cortina Winter Olympics are underway and crucial to the NBC Sports efforts has been the NEP Group which is providing a full range of...
16/02/2026
The Film Independent Spirit Awards have officially switched things up. This Sund...