Water meters set to be compulsory

15/12/2007

EAST Anglia's leading water company has announced that it wants to make household water meters compulsory throughout the region in a bid to combat global warming.

It means that more than two million people in the region will no longer be given the choice of whether to install a pay-as-you-use meter - or pay a flat rate water rates bill.

Anglian Water revealed the policy shift as part of a £1bn package aimed at addressing head-on 25-year forecasts that say rainfall in the region will decrease and that sea levels will rise.

At the moment, 62pc of homes in the Anglian Water region - which stretches from the Humber to the Thames - have water meters fitted and all new houses have them installed as a matter of course.

Under the new policy, it will be mandatory for all domestic users to have a meter fitted by 2035.

Essex and Suffolk Water, which serves 250,000 homes in Yarmouth, Lowestoft and Southwold, also revealed that it is looking at plans to put meters in every time someone moves to a new home.

If Anglian Water's 25-year water saving strategy is approved by industry watchdog Ofwat then it can compulsorily install the devices if anyone refuses to voluntarily put one in their property.

Sara Rowland, from Anglian Water, said: "This is not a U-turn. You have to appreciate how vulnerable East Anglia is to climate change and it would be silly to rule out compulsory metering to help prevent any water wastage.

"At the moment we are very pleased with our voluntary meter system, which can save customers up to £100 a year on their bills, but we can not predict what East Anglia and its water supply will be like in 25 years' time."

The firm also faces the challenge of supplying water to 530,000 homes that will be built in the area in the next 25 years- an increase of 29pc in its customer base, which at present stands at 5.5m users.

In its strategic direction statement Anglian Water admits: "Over the next 25 years we want all water supply costumers' properties to be metered, except where it is not practical.

"It may be necessary to introduce compulsory metering, using a power that will be available to water companies designated as serving areas of serious water stress."

Because of the threat of dry summers and rising sea levels, which could swamp some of the company's key sites, Anglian Water plans to spend £1bn over 25 years on pipes, protecting water supplies and facilities and securing new water sources.

Jonson Cox, Anglian Water's chief executive, said: "Providing clean water and effective wastewater services in not only the driest region in the country, but in an area with a high growth rate, requires long-term planning.

"We are now planning for the future to make sure that our customers continue to receive as good or better service and reliability in 25 year's time as they do today."

Anglian Water's 25-year vision and meter plan will now be sent to Ofwat for approval.

Essex and Suffolk Water said it was currently examining whether from 2010 it can install meters whenever someone moves to a new home.

Last night Anglian Water was awarded four top A grades for its water and wastewater efficiency measures by Ofwat.

The Lowestoft Journal 24 - www.lowestoftjournal.co.uk