England faces 5 billion litre water shortage, warns agency

England’s public water supply could be short by five billion litres a day by 2055 without urgent action to futureproof resources, the Environment Agency has warned.

Climate change, population growth, and environmental pressures are impacting supplies with the predicted shortfall equivalent to a third of our current daily use, or the volume of 4.5 Wembley Stadiums.

A further one billion litres a day will also be needed to generate energy, grow our food, and power emerging technologies, the agency said.

The agency expects 60% of this deficit to be addressed by water companies managing demand and dramatically reducing leaks. The remaining 40% would come from boosting supply, including the building of new reservoirs and water transfer schemes.

The government has secured £104 billion in private sector spending in water company infrastructure over the next five years, including £8 billion committed to boost water supply and manage demand.

Further recommendations and actions include:

Leakage: The agency will continue to work with financial regulator Ofwat on water company pledges to cut leakage by 17% in the next five years and by 50% by 2050.
Smart meters: Water companies have committed to the vital rollout of ten million more smart meters to help customers understand how much they use – and reveal where wastage may be in their homes and businesses. The average person on a meter uses 122 litres per day, compared to 171 litres without.
Efficiency labelling: Household appliances, such as dishwashers, toilets, and showers, can be more efficient and the agency will continue to work with Government on a mandatory efficiency labelling scheme.
Infrastructure: Water company plans includes nine new desalination schemes, 10 new reservoirs and seven new water recycling schemes by 2050.

“We recognise the unprecedented pressures on our water resources and the ambition to further cut abstraction to improve river health, which we strongly support. This is why we announced £8 billion of funding at Price Review 2024 to deliver the required action across the sector to secure our future water supplies,” said David Black (Ofwat Chief Executive).

“Boosting supply through building critical water infrastructure is essential to safeguard supplies of drinking water. The way is now clear for the water industry to build on the success of the recently opened £5 billion Thames Tideway project by stepping forward to deliver an expanded pipeline of 30 major projects which we need in England and Wales.”