Shoppers in Watford were stunned after a bathtub, an incredible 125 times the size of a regular bath, appeared at the Atria Shopping Centre to highlight the town’s water wasting habits.
The showstopping bathtub was commissioned by local water supplier Affinity Water, as part of its SOS: Save Our Streams campaign, after figures show that local residents are using 6%[1] more water than the national average. Despite this, new research reveals that more than half (59%) believe they use less water than the national average. [2]
The giant bath was at the Atria Shopping Centre on Friday 21stand Saturday 22nd May, where Affinity Water’s team urged them to reduce water wastage in their homes and gardens, and join forces to protect the UK’s chalk streams.
Coined ‘Britain’s Great Barrier Reef’, these beautiful rivers, which boast clear water from underground springs, are more endangered than both the Bengal tiger and black rhino. New research with more than 6,000 Affinity Water customers revealed that more than half (53%) visit local rivers and streams more than once a month, and more than three quarters (76%) say they care a lot about their local rivers and streams. [2]
These iconic natural gems are now at risk due to unsustainably high demand for water. With 71% of Affinity Water customers interested in reducing water use at home [2], the new SOS: Save Our Streams campaign aims to support them with tailored water saving advice.
Jane Bellard, SOS Campaign Project Lead at Affinity Water, commented: “Chalk streams like the River Colne areincredibly rare, one of only 200 in the world.
“We are asking residents in Watford to save water equivalent to 69 of our giant bathtubs every day, to help save our streams. This is around 19 litres per household, which can be shaved off really easily, simply by turning the tap off when the water is running but not being used.” [3]
“To help everyone tackle their water wasting habits we have created SaveOurStreams.co.uk, a new and genuinely helpful resource. The website provides tailored advice for easy wins to help us all waste less water, as well as offering water-saving freebies.”
A pilot scheme took place in St Albans last year which saw residents saving more than 700,000 litres of water a day. Building on this success, Affinity Water is calling on everyone to take action to save chalk streams from the brink by saving 21 million litres per day (less than 10 litres per person, per day). Shockingly, this is the equivalent of 140 million cups of tea, 37 million pints of water, 262,500 baths of water and 8.4 Olympic swimming pools.
Jane added: “Affinity Water is committed to ending unsustainable abstraction from local streams, but it must be a community effort. Saving water at home will not only help us do this, it will support our efforts towards a zero-carbon future.”
Members of the public are urged to take action now and visit SaveOurStreams.co.uk where, after answering a few questions about how they use water, they can gain access to their exact household water usage stats, a free water-saving kit and tailored advice.
For more information including high-res imagery, interview and press trip opportunities, please contact Becky at Pier Marketing on becky@pier-marketing.com or on 07501 407760.
References
[1] Local residents use 150.46 of litres every day (PCC – Per Capita Consumption) – the national average is 142.
[2] Research undertaken by Absolute Research with 6,039 Affinity Water customers between 29 March and 11 April 2021.
[3] Of the 36,681 households in Watford, Affinity is asking customers to reduce their water use by 12.5%. Household data taken from https://ukcensusdata.com/watford-e07000103#sthash.zWjnP88Z.dpbs.
About the campaign
SOS: Save Our Streams is a movement created by water supplier Affinity Water to save Britain’s beloved chalk streams from the brink by asking people to waste less water. Act now and visit: SaveOurStreams.co.uk to sign-up and start making changes.
About Affinity Water
We are committed to delivering a high-quality water service to all of our customers. We provide 900 million litres of water each day to a population of more than 3.6 million people in parts of Bedfordshire, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Surrey, the London Boroughs of Harrow and Hillingdon and parts of the London Boroughs of Barnet, Brent, Ealing and Enfield. We also supply water to the Tendring peninsula in Essex and the Folkestone and Dover areas of Kent.
Further information on chalk streams
The majority of the world’s chalk streams are found in England and their heritage should be viewed in the same light as an English rainforest or Great Barrier Reef.
Chalk streams are truly special habitats, home to an abundance of wildlife species such as water crowfoot, flag iris, mayfly, brown trout, kingfisher, otters and the nationally endangered water vole.
Chalk streams are at risk of extinction as the impacts of climate change combine with increasing demand for water from a growing population. Today many English chalk streams are dry in long stretches and do not meet the objectives set out in environmental legislation. The home of Wind in the Willows and lauded by Wordsworth and Keats, these streams are also a much-loved part of the region's identity, but they are facing a fight for survival.
Affinity Water is committing to ending environmentally unsustainable abstraction from these precious river catchments and to work in collaboration with other water companies, industries, universities and NGOs to develop alternative, sustainable water supplies away from chalk river catchments.
Photo credit: Kristen Short
