7 March 2007
Welsh Water has warned regional customers to be sparing with their water this spring ahead of fresh warnings over the predicted water levels this summer.
Despite the fact it is only March, Managing Director of Welsh Water, Nigel Annett, told the Western Mail that climate change and the dry spell predicted for the summer months ahead meant that the supplier's customers could not afford to be wasteful with water.
"While Wales has for so long enjoyed a plentiful supply of water as a result of higher than UK average annual rainfall, this seems no longer to be guaranteed. Weather patterns are changing and experts predict that climate change will mean more hot and dry summers," said Mr Annett.
He added that the limited size of the supplier's reservoirs meant that only 3% of the country's rainfall made it into the water supply.
Mr Annet has received criticism from the Consumer Council for Water in Wales (CCWW) however, with a spokesman hinting that the supplier could do more to reserve the area's water supply by reducing the number of leaks it suffers, rather than putting the onus on its customers.
"The targets set by Ofwat should be seen as a minimum," said the spokesman.
"They are set on the basis of how well the company has done historically. If the company has a problem and it's a poor performer, it's often given a lower target."
According to figures from CCWW, Welsh Water is only placed second in the amount of water it wastes to Thames Water, with Welsh water wasting 167 litres per person per day, compared to Thames Water's 253 litres.
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