Waste less water

For every three litres of water we use, one is wasted. Tackling this waste can help reduce our impact on wildlife as well as cut bills and carbon emissions. Although some good progress has been made since the Blueprint was first launched, water efficiency is far from mainstream and plans for fixing leakage have stagnated.

Reduce water consumption by at least 20% through more efficient use in homes, buildings and businesses.

• In 2011, the Water White Paper should set out plans to make all homes water-efficient, making the links with existing energy saving retrofitting programmes.
• By 2012, the Government should ensure investment required to improve water efficiency and reach sustainable levels of leakage is treated equally to resource development.
• By 2012, all new housing should be ‘water-neutral’ with developers offsetting demand through efficiencies elsewhere. Building in water stressed areas should only be permitted if developers contribute to an overall reduction in demand through efficiency savings.
• By 2012, the Government should introduce water efficiency standards for products (including taps and showers) and require public sector procurement to specify highly water-efficient goods.

Blueprint members will work with the water industry, Government and businesses to develop a public water efficiency campaign that can communicate the value of water and drive changes in behaviour.