House-building programme ‘making water crisis worse’

PLANS to build more than half a million homes in the South East must be urgently reviewed because of the impact that they will have on the region's diminishing water resources, Friends of the Earth said this week. The call coincided with Wednesday's meeting of the South East regional planning committee, which was due to discuss reports on water and housing. The South East, despite the recent downpours, has been experiencing a drought, with most of the region under hosepipe bans, and a number of water companies applying for permits to abstract high levels of water from key rivers. Earlier this month, Sutton and East Surrey Water Company banned all non-essential uses of water, preventing companies, including all those servicing Gatwick Airport, from washing vehicles, windows and buildings. However, if plans to build 578,000 new homes in the region over the next 20 years go ahead, this will put even more pressure on the region's water resources. The regional planning committee was due to discuss reports on water quality and water resources in relation to the housing growth figures in the South East plan. The regional assembly says it believes that water resources can be managed, despite the huge growth in new homes, but it admits that reducing the amount of water used in existing homes, as well as minimising water- use in new homes, is key to avoiding water scarcity. Friends of the Earth's South East regional campaigns co-ordinator, Brenda Pollack, said: "The South East is already facing a severe water shortage and building over half a million more homes in the region is likely to make this problem worse. "Clearly, tougher water-efficiency standards are needed for new and existing homes. But the region's unsustainable house-building plans must also be reviewed to prevent disastrous impacts on our environment. "Climate change is likely to impact even further on the region's water resources. The UK must do more to tackle climate change. This is why we want the government to support a new law requiring annual reductions in carbon dioxide emissions. "The new law, part of Friends of the Earth's 'The Big Ask' climate campaign, is already supported by 50 MPs across the South East, and 75 per cent of the public. We hope that all MPs in the region will now back the campaign."