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Folkestone
and Dover Water, in Kent, has been given the go-ahead to
force 65,000 householders to install water metersafter it
applied for "water scarcity status" because of
the drought affecting the South East. Following the
government ruling, other water firms are expected to
adopt similar measures. Compulsory water metering was
trialled in 11 areas across the country, including the
Isle of Wight, in the 1980s. According to Ofwat papers,
the National Water Metering Trials, from 1989 to 1993,
showed an average reduction in domestic consumption of
11% because of compulsory meters. The exercise involved
meters being installed in about 48,000 properties on the
island. Labour fiercely opposed compulsory metering in opposition, calling it a "tax on family life". The environment minister insisted that water meters would not be made compulsory in the UK but said they were needed in areas where there was a water shortage. Environment Minister Elliot Morley said, "At the moment we believe people should have the option of whether to have a water meter but when you have an issue of water scarcity as they have in Dover and Folkestone, compounded by a very bad drought, you have to take that into account." (Source: BBC News, Mar/06) A rough calculation based on rainfall
figures for 2005 shows that an average of 4.5 million
litres of water per person fell on the UK. The average
consumption of water per person was slightly over 50,000
litres. This means that just 1.2% of the incident
rainfall needs to be captured to satisfy the demand for
water consumption in this country. The posturing by the
Government and water companies and the threats to impose
water meters are not based on any shortage of water. It
is a sad reflection of the failure to provide adequate
water capture and treatment facilities. Norman Graves |
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