Looking closer at water use – and harnessing people power at sites – can help gain efficiencies, lower utility costs and support the progress being made to Net Zero at buildings. Five times Green Apple Environment Award winner and water retailer Water Plus, shows how small steps can all add up to bigger results.

In England and Scotland, water retailers engage with and communicate with customers – who are not households – and provide water and wastewater services including billing. Water wholesalers manage the water network and supply water to sites and take wastewater away.

Cutting out any water waste also helps reduce impacts on the environment – along with reducing the carbon emissions linked to water, which is under Scope 3. If less water needs to be moved around by pumps at a site, or less is used in a process, then there’s an energy saving there too.

Water Plus, the largest water retailer in the UK and a winner of two National Sustainability Awards including for its work helping organisations to reduce water waste, is highlighting water efficiency and water pipe messages, to help organisations of all sizes – under their #BeWiseOnWater awareness campaign, including on its online Help area here – and on its business social media channels.

The sense in regular site checks and maintenance

A total of 92% of people from private sector and public sector organisations who completed an online poll, in January 2022, said they wouldn’t know if there was an underground leak at their organisation**.

Noting down meter readings regularly, if the meter is safe to access, and providing these online, is also worth doing to track use and spot any unexpected changes. Providing meter readings to water retailers during a year also reduces estimated bills, helping with cost control, particularly in this financial year.

Use a lot of water or have more than one meter? Data loggers that can be placed on water meters and feed information on water use into an online portal help you spot saving opportunities too – and highlight additional areas needing attention. This data can also be used to see what seasonal trends there may be for your site – whether the weather is hot – or during the colder months, when pipes and the ground can be affected by changes in temperatures.

Tips to have in mind to be wiser with water, energy and keep your running costs down:

Have a plan in place

Having a water action plan, so you or staff on-site know what to do in a water emergency, is essential to save time and money if the worst should happen.

Take the time to:

• Understand your business water system.
• Check what your insurance covers – know who has financial responsibility.
• Know who to call in the event of an emergency – have numbers ready, so you can respond to leaks or water emergencies quickly and effectively.
• Consider a plan for emergency water delivery to your site, in case of a supply interruption.
• Know where the stop taps are, and make sure staff and facility managers can find them – and turn them off, when needed. It’s worth checking during a year – as part of maintenance routines – that stops taps are in working order and haven’t seized up.

Customers with Water Plus can submit meter readings quickly – at any time – online. For customers registered for the MyAccount portal, see your emails for a link to do this, or go to the Water Plus website homepage here – and scroll down to select “Submit a meter reading”.

To request data loggers, or additional water efficiency services, contact the Water Plus team at: hello@water-plus.co.uk and include “Sben” in the email subject heading.

More on steps organisations can take to reduce water waste, reduce future running costs and lower Greenhouse Gas emissions under Scopes 1, 2 and 3, can be found on the Future Net Zero website at: www.futurenetzero.com/category/water-plus-thought-leadership/