Why water re-use is needed
Water Supply Pressures
The problem
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Much of the population is unaware that the majority of England is already classed as “seriously water stressed” by the Environment Agency. This classification is approved directly by the Secretary of State for regions where demand for water is soon to exceed that of available supply.
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In addition to the seriously water stressed classification, the UK Government’s most recent forecasts highlight a considerable daily water deficit by as early as 2050. Forecasts show that England will require an additional 5 billion litres, on top of our current production levels of 14 billion litres.
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To tackle this extraordinarily high water deficit, the government has recently launched an action plan, titled the Plan for Water, which states how this daily water deficit will be solved. This is key because much of the national media outlets states the need for more supply-side options like reservoirs and large-scale water transfers – totalling 35%.
However, the majority of this water deficit will be met through improved water efficiency and metering – totalling a huge 48%. This figure is key, as if we are going to achieve this water reuse, including rainwater harvesting and greywater recycling will be crucial.
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Why water reuse?
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Utilising harvested water, whether that be rainwater or greywater, is proven to facilitate savings 25 litres per person per day in domestic settings. In non-household settings, these figures typically equate to 75% of the total non-potable water demand within a building.
Wastewater Network Pressures
The Problem
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Much of our wastewater network in the UK still operates off of Victorian principles.
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This is where a single sewer network, named a combined sewer, transports and treats both foul water and storm water together. The problem combining these is that during heavy rainfall events, the wastewater network can quickly reach capacity.
When capacity in this network is reached, the network must be relieved through allowing untreated wastewater to flow into our natural water ways – these are titled Combined Sewer Overflows (CSOs) and are highly polluting.
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Why water reuse?
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Rainwater and greywater are both best managed where they land or are produced. This means that we can reduce the volume of surface water and greywater entering our existing combined sewer network, alleviating capacity and reducing the need for highly polluting CSOs.
