 Water shortage is often sited as the
reason to conserve water but in Swansea, which has the second highest
rainfall in Britain, you may find that hard to swallow! Despite the
apparent abundance of water in this part of the country, it takes a lot
of energy and technology to bring it to us safe and clean to drink.
Most of the water that is collected in and around the Swansea area is
actually transported out of the area.
It is really clear just
how dependent we are on this water during times of drought, when
reservoirs get to dangerously low levels, forcing water companies to
extract more from existing underground reservoirs which are not been
refilled by rainfall and from rivers that are already running low. This
puts huge pressure on wildlife like otters and butterflies as too much
water is drained away. Low river levels also increase concentration of
pollutants in the water, meaning there is less oxygen for the plant and
animal life. As the population grows and plans for building new homes
in the South East materialise, this will put even more pressure on our
water resources. The construction of new reservoirs is not necessarily
the answer - in often protected mountainous regions is costly and
controversial and inflicts environmental damage. So now is the time to
start practicing conserving water.
On the Trail...
The Pit Stop Car Wash
is a commercial car wash. The water used in washing cars doesn't need
to be as clean as drinking water so Jeremy Thorne, owner of the Pit
Stop Car Wash, has devised an innovative way to avoid using mains tap
water. The run off from washed cars is collected and processed through
a series of settling tanks and a reed bed system which cleanses the
water enough to reuse the water for more car washing. Jeremy also makes
sure that the products he uses to clean the cars have no harmful
chemicals in. A car wash with a conscience!
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