World Water Day is celebrated annually on 22 March, and accelerates change to solve the water and sanitation crisis.
This year's campaign, Be The Change, aims to encourage everyone to make simple swaps to change how we use, consume and manage water.
The Earth is made of more than 70 per cent water, so how is there a global water crisis? Only one per cent of the Earth's water can sustainably be converted into safe drinking water.
It is challenging to visualise what this means for everyone worldwide, but the United Nations has created a great analogy, applying the global crisis to a community of just one hundred people. In this community:
Twenty-five people would have to collect unsafe water from a stream or pond, often far away, or queue for hours and pay a high price to a vendor. The water would regularly make them so sick they couldn't go to work or school. Death from entirely preventable diseases, like cholera and typhoid, would be a constant danger.
Twenty-two people would have no choice but to go to the toilet in the streets, bushes or fields or use unhygienic and dysfunctional latrines.
They would either work in or receive care at a healthcare facility without basic water service, placing them at heightened risk of infectious diseases. In addition, many of those will receive treatment for illnesses that could have been prevented with safe water and sanitation in the community.
The other 53 people, having safe toilets connected to systems that safely treat waste, would need to be made aware of how vital their sanitation services are to protecting their health and well-being.
This shows that just under half the world's population still needs access to safe, clean drinking water.
What can we do to help?
Although in the UK we’re incredibly lucky to have such an established, safe water and sanitization process, we still need to all save water where we can – to ensure us, and other water companies, can keep the taps running for everyone.
For example, collecting rainwater through the winter to water your garden in the summer means using a free resource that plants love, saving the water in the reservoirs for essential use and the environment.
Reusing your cooking water to water plants or collecting water in a bucket while waiting for your shower to warm up saves water, and helps the environment too.
Fixing leaks makes a big difference to how much water is wasted. We’re continuing to work around the clock to find and fix leaks on our networkand investing in upgrading ageing and burst-prone water mains to prevent further water loss.
Over the next few years, we will invest millions in continuing to beat and improve our leakage targets.
We are committed to reducing the amount of water lost to leaks on our network and customers' homes by fifteen per cent between 2020 and 2025.
Finding and fixing leaks in your home and on your property will help too. A leak in your home can impact your bills and cause significant damage and appliances, too, so it’s really important to find and fix them as quickly as possible.
If you think you may have a leak at home, we’re here to help. Take a look at our recommendations for looking for a leak at home here(opens in a new tab). Watch our video on how to identify a leak, what to do when you find a leak at home, and how to let us know.
Whether you have already made swaps at home to save water, or if you think there’s more you can do to reduce how much water you and those you live with use, we’ve got a bucket load of ideas to try. Simply log into our online portal MyAccount, or explore our ideas here.
We can all do our bit to save water. Be the change you want to see in the world.
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