The CIEH has published an article expressing their concerns over the installation of water meters by Thames Water. Thames Water’s plans to install water meters in 80 per cent of homes over the next 12 years. The CIEH is concerned that this will impact most on the poorer sections of the population because the proposal allows some customers to use as much water as they want whilst penalising less well off individuals. Thames Water has stated that it will trial differential tariffs and I believe that social tariffs are indeed key to ensuring equity whilst protecting our water resources.
The article suggests that alternative actions should also be taken by Thames Water including resource development and control of system leakage which the article suggests, by 2010, will still be the equivalent of the daily usage of 4.3 million customers. Thames Water is the UK’s biggest water supplier and plans to get 50 per cent of its customers on meters by 2015 and 80 per cent by 2020.
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