WATER PLANS MUST LOOK AT OUR LONG TERM NEEDS

It is too risky for national water plans to rely solely on residents using less water when providing for the region's long term needs. The plans must also help to deliver adequate water resources, says the South East England Regional Assembly.

Responding to consultation on the Environment Agency's national Water Resource Strategy for the next 25 years, the Assembly believes that the strategy needs to consider the South East's circumstances because it will need to deliver significant growth in the next 20 years and it is a comparatively dry region. The Assembly stressed that the strategy:

* Needs to complement the South East Plan, a 20-year planning vision, and match its long term investment vision to help deliver growth including water resources eg new water reservoirs

* Can and should encourage residents to reduce water use (1) and, in times of drought, to limit non-essential use eg water a garden, wash a car, fill a swimming pool etc

* Should have a greater focus on reducing carbon emissions when supplying and treating water, and help water companies to promote low carbon solutions eg avoiding high energy uses such as desalination where possible.

Assembly Chairman Cllr Keith Mitchell, said:

"The South East region needs to deliver growth and this is bound to contribute to increased use of our water resources. We therefore need to tackle this from all sides. It is essential that the Environment Agency, the water companies and other groups work with the Assembly to help deliver the region's water needs in a timely and sustainable way."

He added:

"The region also has a challenge in the face of climate change. South East residents are using less water than previous years but we should try to do better. It is about managing our need and our environment."

(1) The South East's draft Regional Sustainability Framework sets a target of 135 litres per person per day by 2016. The Assembly's monitoring report 2005/06 states that unmetered households use 166 litres per person per day and metered households use 148 litres a day.

Contacts

Lesley van Dijk, Assembly PR Executive - 01483 555223

Heather Bolton, Assembly Communications Director - 01483 555220

Notes to editors:

1. The Assembly's full response to the consultation can be viewed on the consultation page.
2. The Environment Agency's Water Resource Strategy is available at
3. The Assembly is a partnership of councils and communities in the South East region. It was established in January 1999 to give a representative voice to the region, which covers Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, East and West Sussex, Hampshire, Isle of Wight, Kent, Oxfordshire and Surrey.
4. The Assembly is made up of 112 members including elected councillors nominated by the region's local authorities and 37 representatives from other sectors of the community (including business, trades unions, education, housing, health, sports, culture, tourism, faith groups, environmental, community and voluntary organisations) as well as the New Forest National Park Authority.
5. The Assembly has six roles:
1. Regional Planning
   preparing and delivering the South East Plan
2. Regional Housing
   the Regional Housing Board decides housing investment priorities
3. Regional Transport
   the Regional Transport Board decides transport investment priorities
4. Advocacy
   pressing the South East's interests in London and Brussels
5. Accountability
   scrutinising SEEDA's plans and impact
6. Alignment
   co-ordinating regional policies and decisions.

Our vision is for a distinctive, outward-looking, accessible region of prosperous, sustainable communities, with a high quality of life and environment.

Last updated: 01 November 2007