Why It Matters
Water Consumption and Sewage
Summary
We have measured the average amount spent on water consumption in a given postcode in £mn per year.
Definition
| Dataset | Explanation |
|---|---|
| Postcode average water consumption expenditure | The amount spent per year on water consumption in a chosen postcode. |
| Postal sector average water consumption expenditure | The average amount spent on water consumption per year out of all the postcodes in a chosen postal sector. |
| Postal sector median water consumption expenditure | The median amount spent on water consumption per year out of all the postcodes in a chosen postal sector. |
| London-wide average water consumption expenditure | The average amount spent on water consumption per year out of all the postcodes in London. |
| London-wide median water consumption expenditure | The median amount spent on water consumption per year out of all the postcodes in London. |
| Postcode deviation from the London-wide average water consumption expenditure | How much in £mn the chosen postcode deviates from the London-wide average spent on water consumption per year. |
| Z-score of postcode average water consumption expenditure | Tells you the number of standard deviations that the selected postcode’s water consumption differs from the London-wide average. |
| Harmonised score of water consumption expenditure | A relative score out of 100 which ordinally scales a neighbourhood’s water consumption. A score of one indicates the lowest water consumption available in London whilst a score of 100 indicates the highest. |
| Harmonised score quartile | Shows which quartile a selected postcode’s water consumption falls within. |
Why the metric matters from commercial inhabitant’s perspective?
A commercial inhabitant will be interested in the water consumption of an area for a couple of reasons. Not least the fact that high consumption equates to higher bills, and such high consumption may indicate inefficiencies in the local water supply and in the buildings that receive it. These could range from leaky pipes to dripping taps to outdated central heating systems.
Furthermore a high consumption of water could imply a high density of housing in that neighbourhood, meaning there’s a likelihood of a greater number of potential customers for your business. However, it could also mean that there are a lot of businesses there too, and thus a high level of competition.
Given that water consumption doesn’t indicate anything concrete relating to factors other than simply water consumption, it is important to observe this metric in tandem with other metrics such as Residential Dwelling Density or Business Concentration if you wish to glean the most information possible.
Why the metric matters from the residential inhabitant’s perspective?
Almost every dwelling in the UK is hooked up to the system that provides homes with clean water for drinking and sanitation, so for a residential inhabitant, understanding an area’s water consumption is mainly a question of costs, as well as environmental impact, for much the same reasons as a commercial inhabitant.
As the cost of water, like all other household bills, is relative to the amount consumed, it figures that a higher consumption of water on average in a neighbourhood, the higher your water bill will likely be. This could indicate generally larger homes with more inhabitants, especially ones with older, less efficient heating systems, and green gardens that need watering regularly, as well as suggesting that an area may have higher levels of agriculture or dense industry.
Uncharacteristically high water consumption compared to neighbouring areas could also indicate a problem such as leaking fixtures like toilets or pipes, dripping taps or problems with water softening, thus implying poor maintenance in that area. For the resident, this could be cause for concern and investigated on both at the level of the individual home and the community as a whole.
In countries that have less reliable sources of clean water it’s even more important to know the water consumption levels in the area you are looking to move to. A higher level of consumption could indicate a more consistent and dependable water supply, while low levels of consumption could imply a scarcity of clean water. That said, in these areas a holistic understanding is required as in certain localities there could be high consumption due to industry, but that industry may draw water away from neighbouring residential zones, so this metric must be assessed in relation to other metrics.
General Commentary
With the twin challenges of population growth and climate change putting pressure on water resources in the medium to long term, reducing average household water consumption is a key strategic objective for the UK water industry. Average water consumption across the country currently stands at 141 litres per person per day, which compares unfavourably to countries like Germany (121 litres), and the UK government has set the target of reducing our per capita consumption to 130 litres.
The UK has, for over half a century, had wide-reaching access to water and sanitation and had a generally good quality of service, which continues to improve to this day and relies on its extensive infrastructure of over 1,000 reservoirs, 2,500 water treatment works and 9,000 sewage treatment works, supplied by over 700,000km of pipes. The country has one of the most extensive and reliable water and sanitation supplies in the world.
Generally only about 10% of the UK’s water supplies is abstracted for use, with half of that amount supplied to homes and businesses, and the other half used for industry in processes such as power plant cooling and fish farming. The majority of this water is drawn from surface water which accumulates from rainfall, which the UK has a relatively high amount of, as well as melting ice and snow.
Local water and sewage disposal authorities began to consolidate in the early 1970s with the Water Act of 1973 which created ten nationalised regional authorities who expanded the supply and provided water and sewage to Britons for a low fee. Tariffs increased dramatically upon the election of Margaret Thatcher who insisted water authorities be run more like businesses, followed by full privatisation in 1989. From then on bills increased 46% in real terms from 1990-2000, while at the same time operating profits grew 142% in real terms over that period. The Water Industry Act of 1999 banned the disconnection of customers based on non-payment of bills, and enabled companies to charge relative to the value of property.
Despite the good water supply, the UK does suffer from drought at a relatively high rate because of it’s high water consumption per capita, high levels of agricultural usage, and reliance upon rainfall. These tend to be particularly felt in the south east where population density is highest. They have resulted in measures such as hosepipe bans, notably in 2006. These droughts are not as severe as in other parts of the world though, and a drought is called in the UK only when there have been around 3 weeks of precipitation lower than a third of the usual rate.
Trivia
The length of the sewer network in the UK is enough to reach to the moon and back!
History
Without fresh water, much of the earth’s life cannot be sustained, so for millennia access to water has been a priority for human civilization. The earliest cities like Jericho, which developed almost 10,000 years ago dug wells to retrieve water, while water pipes and toilets have been found in the ancient Indus Valley city of Mohenjo-daro, founded around 2,500 BC.
The Greeks developed indoor plumping systems and even underfloor heating, and an inverted siphon system which carried wastewater away from cities of ancient Crete, along with its glass-covered clay pipes, are still in working order 3,000 years later. The Romans built some of the earliest sewerage systems including the Cloaca Maxima, built in 600 BC, and of course built their famous aqueducts which carried water across the empire.
The importance of cleanliness and personal hygiene expressed in Islam meant that bathhouses and sewer systems were built throughout the mediaeval Muslim world. Some of these, particularly in Baghdad where there were 65,000 baths, were powered by hydraulic technology that also provided clean drinking water. Much of mediaeval Europe on the other hand still used open waterways or gutters along the centre of streets for wastewater, much of which was used for fertiliser, and which relied on rainfall to be washed away.
The overcrowding brought by the Industrial Revolution in Europe and the USA led to the outbreaks of multiple waterborne diseases like cholera and typhoid, which combined with the increased effluent that needed to be removed, led to a desperate attempt to update sewage and water systems. The Great Stink of 1858 caused by waste being dumped in the Thames spurred the construction of the London sewer system by Joseph Bazalgette, which London still uses today.
The early-20th century saw further developments such as the activated sludge process, modern flush toilets and various water treatment practices including filtering, chlorination and fluoridation, the latter of which was only introduced for the purposes of preventing tooth decay.