Business water use

Businesses receive water either from the public water supply (i.e., from water companies) or directly from the environment (i.e., from private boreholes or reservoirs). The majority of water abstracted from the environment in England and Wales is for non-household water use (see also Scottish Environmental Protection Agency and Northern Ireland Environment Agency):

 

Non-tidal Abstraction

(Taken from Water for Life, based on 2009 data for England and Wales)

In England and Wales, non-household water use accounts for about 20% of public supply (according to 2008 data from the Environment Agency). In Scotland, non-household use accounts for about 35% (according to 2010 date from Scottish Water); in Northern Ireland, about 45% (according to a 2004 SNIFFER report). Though not the major users, businesses still have a role to play in helping protect our water supplies.

 

 

Our research on business water use concentrates in the following:

  • Evaluation of water efficiency initiatives that save businesses water and therefore money; see, for example, our EDRF PICTURE programme

  • Strategies, policies, regulations and tools to help businesses save; for example, we’re working on a Defra study that will develop guidance for businesses on how to become more efficient on-site and throughout their supply chains, and we’re also working on a plan to engage businesses as part of the South East of England Water Partnership

  • Intermediaries for change – what we mean by this is that businesses, through their interaction with people and households, are well placed to offer water efficiency services and foster a culture of water saving; for example, our Defra-funded Plug-It project is investigating the role of plumbers in promoting water efficiency to households and the roles of merchants in promoting water efficiency to plumbers