Water supply and sanitation in England and Wales
| England and Wales: Water and Sanitation | ||
|---|---|---|
 
|
||
| Data | ||
| Water coverage (broad definition) | 100% | |
| Sanitation coverage (broad definition) | 100% | |
| Continuity of supply (%) | 100% | |
| Average urban water use (litre/capita/day) | 145 (2008–09) | |
| Average urban domestic water and sewer bill for 20m3 | £27.5/month (2008–09) | |
| Share of household metering | 33% (2008) | |
| Non-revenue water | 19% | |
| Share of collected waste water treated | 100% | |
| Annual investment in WSS | £61/capita (2000-2005 average) | |
| Share of self-financing by utilities | 100% | |
| Share of tax-financing | 0% | |
| Share of external financing | 0% | |
| Institutions | ||
| Decentralisation to municipalities | No | |
| National water and sanitation company | None | |
| Water and sanitation regulator | Yes (since 1989) | |
| Responsibility for policy setting | ||
| Sector law | None | |
| Number of service providers | 28 | |
Public water supply and sanitation in England and Wales has been characterised by universal access and generally good service quality. Salient features of the sector in the United Kingdom compared to other developed countries is the full privatisation of service provision and the pioneering of independent economic regulation in the sector in Europe. There has been a substantial increase in real tariffs between 1989 and 2005, whilst independent assessments place the cost of water provision in the UK as higher than most other major countries in the EU. The government body responsible for water regulation, together with the water companies, have claimed improvements in service quality during the same period.
On average, only about 10 per cent of freshwater resources in England and Wales are abstracted. Water companies abstract almost half of this amount. The remainder is used for cooling power plants, other industries, fish farming and other uses. Water companies use mainly surface water (two thirds), but also groundwater (one third).
The amount of water available in England and Wales to meet the needs of people and to sustain the water environment varies greatly between different places and seasons, and from one year to another. Parts of Wales and the English Lake District are well endowed with water, while water is scarce in parts of Eastern and Southeastern England. Parts of England were affected by severe drought in 1976, 1995 and 2005-2007.
Household water use in England and Wales stood at about 145 litres/capita/day in 2008/09. Total water supply for domestic and commercial customers in England and Wales was 14.5 million cubic metres per day in 2009.
The quality of water and sanitation services in England and Wales is regularly and comprehensively monitored by the economic regulator, OFWAT. OFWAT statistics show that service quality has improved since the early 1990s, i.e. shortly after services were privatised. For example, the number of unplanned interruptions, properties at risk of low pressure, the share of complaints that were not answered within five days and combined sewer overflows have all declined, while sewage treatment works compliance has increased and river water quality has improved. A comparison with service quality in other areas of the European Union is difficult, since in few other countries such comprehensive water and sanitation service quality data are being published as it is being done by OFWAT.
Drinking water quality is also universally high, although isolated incidents where quality falls have occurred. For example, in June 2008 about 250,000 people in Northamptonshire were being told to boil tap water for drinking after routine tests by Anglian Water found cryptosporidium
...
Wikipedia