17 October 2006
Water companies should recycle sewage to meet increased demand for water, a report has claimed.
The Institute of Civil Engineers (ICE) warns that the UK could face a "huge shortfall" in water supplies over the next two decades unless steps are taken now.
Water companies across the south of England enforced draught orders and hose pipe bans over the summer, but the ICE states that more radical solutions are needed in the long-term and has urged water companies to recycle sewage effluent.
ICE water board chairman John Lawson said: "Effluent water reuse is still a relatively untapped way of providing drinking water to meet growing long-term needs."
Recycling effluent requires water to be sieved and chemically cleaned before being pumped back into rivers.
Pressure group Waterwise, which campaigns to reduce water consumption, welcomed the report but said improved water efficiency was more effective than investing in infrastructure.
"Waterwise believes that although there is a role for increased water supply infrastructure in some parts of the UK, greater water efficiency is essential to secure our future water supplies," the group said.
However, Water UK, which represents water companies, dismissed the suggestion as "sensationalist".