Despite the popular perception of the UK as a wet, rainy nation, there are big regional differences in rainfall patterns and droughts are nothing new. A parliamentary committee has even warned that .
Climate change is leading to hotter, drier summers like the current one, and summer rainfall in England is expected to This trend and the country鈥檚 growing population mean sticking-plaster solutions, such as the hosepipe bans now facing millions of people in England, aren鈥檛 a long-term answer to water shortages.
The solutions fall into three buckets: new water supply, fixing leaking pipes and using water more efficiently. A by the National Infrastructure Commission (NIC), which advises the UK government, found that each of the three approaches will contribute roughly a third of the 4 billion extra litres of capacity England will need per day in coming decades. The Environment Agency .
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at the Regulators鈥� Alliance for Progressing Infrastructure Development, a body set up in 2019 by three water regulators to advance big water infrastructure projects in England and Wales , says the current dry conditions reinforce the need to take action on all three fronts. 鈥淲e know that climate change, the changing needs of society and increasing population will put pressure on water sources 鈥� and we can expect more frequent [dry] events, as we鈥檙e experiencing.鈥�
Increasing water supply
On the supply front, the focus is on major new reservoirs to increase storage, as climate change is expected to bring warmer, wetter winters. Proposed ones include a scheme near Abingdon in Oxfordshire, two in East Anglia, one in south-east Lincolnshire and one in the Fens of eastern England.
Only one major new reservoir has been green-lit recently: Havant Thicket, an 8.7 billion-litre site in Hampshire in southern England. Getting such projects built is rarely plain sailing: a 拢1 billion precursor to the Abingdon project following local opposition over environmental impacts.
Another measure is improving water transfer from wetter parts of the UK to the driest parts in south-east England. Proposals include a pipeline from the Severn river to the Thames, as well as using England鈥檚 longest canal, the Grand Union.
Many of these big infrastructure projects will go for consultation in November, with the intent to start building from 2025 onwards. Hickey says many projects will be elevated in the planning process to national decisions, so the UK鈥檚 next prime minister will have to take 鈥渟ome political decisions鈥� on approvals.
The cost will ultimately be borne by consumers via water bills. But the NIC suggests the cost of inaction would be more: 拢40 billion over 30 years for emergency responses including trucking water versus 拢21 billion for the investments needed. Failure to act would harm the environment via 鈥渄amaging abstractions鈥� from natural sources during drought and, in the worst case, risk security of supply, according to the NIC report. 鈥淯nder really extreme situations, you may have to manage people鈥檚 access to water,鈥� says Hickey. 鈥淚鈥檓 not trying to scaremonger, but this did happen in 1975.鈥�
Desalinisation plants, which turn seawater into fresh water by removing salt, are also likely to play a role in the future, he says. Despite the dry conditions, the UK鈥檚 only existing major desalinisation plant, run by Thames Water in east London, is offline until next year due to maintenance work to replace air mains. Hickey says this isn鈥檛 good enough: 鈥淭hese pieces of infrastructure should be up and running so that they are ready when they鈥檙e needed.鈥� A planned 拢600 million plant at Fawley in Hampshire was .
Plugging leaks
Leaking pipes are a big issue too: 9 cubic metres leaked per kilometre per day on average last year. Several of England and Wales鈥檚 19 private water companies . The industry鈥檚 goal is to halve leaks by 2050. Hickey won鈥檛 be drawn on whether the target is ambitious enough, but says: 鈥淚t is a step change to what we鈥檝e achieved historically.鈥�
at The Rivers Trust says the deadline should be 2030. She concedes this comes with a cost, but says it needs to be weighed up with the impacts on the natural world that England is seeing this summer. 鈥淚f the cost of not fixing that leak is that you鈥檙e going to dry out a river or a stream, that鈥檚 an unacceptable cost.鈥�
Other efforts are being made to use water more efficiently. The UK government is expected to announce plans for mandatory water efficiency labels for products such as toilets and showers in coming weeks, and water meters are seen as vital: .
Water firms need to educate consumers about the environmental impact of their water use too, says Hickey. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a really powerful way to get people to engage with this agenda,鈥� he says. Ultimately, everyone will have a part to play. Matching future water demand will require a 鈥渨hole society response鈥�, says Colvin.
