Scottish Water imposes ‘hypocritical' guidelines amid heatwave – see how it affects you

Scottish Sun

17-05-2025

PIPE DREAM Scottish Water imposes 'hypocritical' guidelines amid heatwave – see how it affects you
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SCOTTISH Water have been blasted for imposing "hypocritical" water guidelines on the public while losing MILLIONS of litres every day.
The country is currently going through one of its worse dry spells in decades as temperatures soar past 22C.
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Scotland is going through its worst dry spell in 60 years
Credit: John Kirkby
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Rivers are running low after drying up in the heat
Credit: John Kirkby
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Scots are being urged to save water
Credit: John Kirkby
Reservoirs are currently sitting at 81 per cent, ten percent less than they normally are in May.
It has seen the water quango urge Scots to conserve water.
Alex Plant, Scottish Water's Chief Executive, said: 'We're working hard to maintain normal supplies for all customers and would ask that they use water efficiently to protect this precious resource.
'We believe that a large part of the additional water use at the moment is in gardens so we would ask that customers are mindful of how much water they use there.
'Scotland's climate is clearly changing and, as a country, we need to ensure we adapt both by investing appropriately in water infrastructure – which Scottish Water is doing - and ensuring we do what we can to use water more efficiently in our homes and businesses.
'Water is always worth saving and by taking simple steps to reduce the volume used around the home and garden we can make our country's water go even further and help maintain normal supplies.'
Scottish Water's plea ended up being soaked in irony, after it emerged while urging the public to save water, they are losing millions of litres.
The company's own figures revealed they lost 454 litres in a day because of leaky pipes across the country, reports The Daily Mail.
Scotland's Drinking Water Quality Regulator served Scottish Water with a notice over a major maintenance backlog.
Douglas Lumsden, Scottish Conservative energy and net zero spokesman, said: "Scottish Water cannot expect Scots to cut down given they are losing the equivalent of nearly 200 swimming pools each day, which people will see as completely hypocritical.
"This advice will also have a major impact on our farmers who rely on water for crop production and to do their jobs.
Scotland faces 25C heat surge from TODAY – but weather expert has warning for early May
"Scots will be hoping that their efforts to cut down water wastage will prove more fruitful as this spell of good weather continues."
Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton added: "Being told to reduce water consumption will be hard for people to swallow when Scottish Water have failed to fix underlying problems and leaky pipes."
A spokesperson for Scottish Water said: "We work hard every day to find and fix leakage.
How can you save water?
HERE is how Scottish Water is urging people to save water: Showers and baths use the most amount of water in the home (30%). Knocking 2 minutes off your shower can save over 5,000 litres and £130 off your energy bill, each year.
Cleaning our teeth with the tap running wastes 5 litres of water a minute - an instant saving by simply turning off the tap while brushing.
Found a dripping tap? A dripping tap can waste over 5,500 litres of water a year so make sure taps are turned off properly or replace the washer.
A leaking toilet can waste between 215 and 400 litres of water every day. Between 5 and 8% of toilets are leaking, and it is most common with dual flush toilets.
So if your toilet is leaking, get it fixed as quickly as possible.
Save on your energy bills by filling the kettle with only the water you need, you'll also save time waiting for the kettle to boil!
Remember to wash your dishes in a basin or bowl instead of under a running tap, or if using a dishwasher wait for a full load and use the eco setting to help save not only water but energy too!
Fully load your washing machine and dishwasher and use the eco-setting where possible to save water and energy. Washing clothes at 30 degrees rather than 40 degrees reduces your machine's energy consumption by 57%.
Use a bucket and sponge to wash the car instead of a hosepipe.
A hose wastes 1,000 litres of water an hour. Save water and nourish your plants' roots using a watering can instead. Alternatively, you can fit your hosepipe with a trigger nozzle so it only runs when you need it.
Use a water butt! Did you know? Rainwater is better for your plants as there is nitrogen in the rain which helps plants thrive. A small Scottish roof collects over 45,000 litres of water each year, that's more than enough to keep your water butt topped up!
Source: Scottish Water
"A large proportion of the leaks we now have are small in size and nature, so harder to find and fix, and we are deploying a range of approaches and innovations to hunt them down.
"About a quarter of leakage is from pipework within home owners' gardens and under driveways. We will support home owners to resolve these problems when identified.'
"In addition to being criticised for its leaks, Scottish Water was ordered in 2023 to carry out an emergency clean-up of tap water supplies after they were found to pose a 'potential danger to human health'."