Portsmouth Water

Portsmouth Water supplies water services to an area of 868 square kilometres, stretching through Hampshire and West Sussex from the River Meon in the west to the River Arun in the east, with a population of 654,800.

Portsmouth Water dates back to 1857 when the Borough of Portsmouth Waterworks Company was formed to supply water to Portsmouth. Portsmouth Water now has 235 employees and an annual income of £28 million.

Deriving its water from two groups of springs, one river and 18 borehole sites, Portsmouth Water provides 175 million litres a day via 21 reservoirs, 20 treatments works and 3,222 km of water mains. Portsmouth Water supplies water to 286,680 properties, 17,780 of which have water meters.

Portsmouth Water is a water only supplier, so Portsmouth Water customers will have their sewerage services supplied by Southern Water.

As two separate companies provide water and sewerage services, Portsmouth Water customers may receive separate bills for each service or Portsmouth Water may bill them for both services and collect the money on behalf of the sewerage company.

To be classed as wholesome, water must comply with the water quality standards set out in the Water Supply (Water Quality) Regulations 1989.

In 2003, 23,369 tests were carried out on samples taken by Portsmouth Water. 99.9% of these tests complied with the Regulations (source: http://www.dwi.gov.uk).

Portsmouth Water is generally a hard water area. However, water hardness levels can vary within each area. Portsmouth Water can provide you with further information about water hardness in your particular area.

In the Ofwat report 'Water and sewerage service unit costs and relative efficiency 2002-03', Portsmouth Water was identified as the most efficient water company in England and Wales for both Operating and Capital Maintenance Efficiency.

Portsmouth Water operates a "Guaranteed Standards Scheme" which sets out the level of service domestic Portsmouth Water customers can expect, such as response times to queries and notification of service interruptions. If Portsmouth Water fails to meet this level then customers may be entitled to compensation.