Jimmy Coles’ Post

Working with Future Water and BMG Research on our latest report on public attitudes to #water has been fascinating. Water is a complex subject. Despite the media attention for years, public understanding of how the sector works and how water gets to and from homes and businesses is low. Public understanding around the role we all need to play in conserving water is not high enough. This isn't the public's fault. We all need to double down on helping the public understand the UK's water story. And this includes the strategic industrial benefit the sector brings - skills, R&D, jobs and environmental benefits to name a few points. AMP8 will be based on plans to address some of the challenges we face in the UK. However, for AMP8 to be successful, we need to bring communities and society with us. Today's report tests the water on where public understanding is. It gives us a benchmark to start from and where industry needs to help. Thanks for your support Paul Horton, Mark Smith, Simon Wood, Panayiota Papouridou, Jimmy Coles and the Copper Consultancy team. https://lnkd.in/eydPg7xm

We all need water and there are undoubtedly challenges ahead, for the sector and for customers. Taking water customers with us will make challenge a lot easier to accomplish. Yet, as our report shows, this requires us to fully engage customers and enable them to have an informed role in the debate. #mrx #rskgroup

The UK's water sector faces a raft of challenges as it navigates multiple crises. But we've found that a key issue - which has exacerbated other controversies and further damaged public trust - is that water companies have underinvested in communicating what they do to the public. In a report by Copper and the Future Water Association, it is demonstrated that a significant portion of the public have low understanding around processes such as sewage treatment. To build their reputations in the long-term, one of the first steps water companies need to take is engaging and educating the public with regards to what they do, and how water works in the UK.

Low public knowledge about water has allowed misconceptions to take root and trust to be eroded in the sector, according to a new report published today... https://lnkd.in/eWcRXmHn Copper Consultancy Future Water #water #watermagazine #waterindustry #wastewaterindustry

Those of us who have been in and around the water industry for years (since before privatisation in my case) sometimes forget that the processes and networks to get water to our taps and our wastewater away are not more widely understood. Most consumers clearly don't think about it until something goes wrong. The report, which can be downloaded from the Future Water Association website News page https://lnkd.in/dv25Japk makes very interesting and concerning reading.

Did you know, Analysis of Water UK data by the Angling Trust in 2021 showed that on average, UK water companies replace 0.05% of their water and wastewater pipe networks every year. In contrast, most European countries replace their pipes at a rate of around 0.5% every year. At this rate, it would take water companies 2,000 years to restore the country’s current water infrastructure unless priorities and thinking change. The current influx of AMP8 spending between 2025-2030 offers local authorities and councils an opportunity to reverse these timelines by investing in critical asset maintenance and repair. By optimising assets rather than replacing them, we can not only improve the country’s water infrastructure, but we can do it in a more sustainable, cost effective and environmentally-friendly manner. Get your specialist water whitepaper here! http://spkl.io/6040fB7aO Or find out more: http://spkl.io/6041fB7aP #AMP8 #utilities #assetoptimisation #water #sewerage

What values are behind decisions about water? Insights from a global survey with water professionals Christopher Schulz (University of St Andrews, UK), Julia Martin-Ortega (University of Leeds, UK) & Klaus Glenk (Scotland’s Rural College (SRUC), UK) A growing number of water-related organisations endorse ‘valuing water’ as a new water management paradigm. While this proposal intuitively resonates with many water professionals and policymakers, it is less clear which values inform decision-making about water (and how they inform decisions). Christopher Schulz, Julia Martin-Ortega, and Klaus Glenk report on the findings of a global online survey carried out for the Government of the Netherlands’ Valuing Water Initiative that set out to understand precisely that: how can we think about water management adopting a values lens? https://lnkd.in/ggzGgZrs

Did you know, Analysis of Water UK data by the Angling Trust in 2021 showed that on average, UK water companies replace 0.05% of their water and wastewater pipe networks every year. In contrast, most European countries replace their pipes at a rate of around 0.5% every year. At this rate, it would take water companies 2,000 years to restore the country’s current water infrastructure unless priorities and thinking change. The current influx of AMP8 spending between 2025-2030 offers local authorities and councils an opportunity to reverse these timelines by investing in critical asset maintenance and repair. By optimising assets rather than replacing them, we can not only improve the country’s water infrastructure, but we can do it in a more sustainable, cost effective and environmentally-friendly manner. Get your specialist water whitepaper here! https://lnkd.in/eQ3ZNr3n Or find out more: https://lnkd.in/eJCPmEzA #AMP8 #utilities #assetoptimisation #water #sewerage

Did you know it's World Water Day this Friday? If you didn't...you do now… If you haven't had the chance to read my piece on water consumption and water scarcity in the UK - no need to worry...here's a handy booklet summarising the pertinent points. I was shocked to discover that my daily water consumption was 70% higher than the national average…and that’s coming from someone that should know better! It's evident that we as individuals, need a better appreciation of the value of water. And of course the water industry also hold significant responsibility in addressing the issues at hand. Stay tuned for my upcoming post, where I'll explore potential solutions to tackle this industry-wide challenge. Elliott Wood #watermanagement #waterindustry #construction #civilengineering #waterconservation #sustainability #everydropcounts #conservewater

Waterwise Policy Asks of the New Government - July 2024 We face a water deficit of at least 4800 million litres per day (Mld) if we want to have a healthy environment, secure water supplies and future growth. Over 50% of this deficit needs to be met by reducing our water demand with at least 1000 Mld relying on new government policy.  Today Waterwise set out its top 6 water saving policy priorities for the new government – together they have potential to reduce water use by more than 2000 Mld: - Deliver the UK mandatory water efficiency label making it easy for people and businesses to choose more water efficient products - Urgently increase water saving ambition in Building Regulations for new development - Support the planned smart water meter roll-out in England - Update the Energy Performance Certificate to include water efficiency - Require very high water using businesses to report on their efforts to reduce water use - Require all buildings to be fitted with leak detection Read Waterwise full Policy Asks Document here https://lnkd.in/eAdv5-m5