SE hosepipe ban: water company blames people working from home 'increasing drinking water demand

[Celerity]

The first hosepipe ban of the summer has been blamed on more people working from home since the pandemic leading to an ‘increased demand’ for drinking water

https://inews.co.uk/news/hosepipe-ban-water-company-working-from-home-2434431



A water company boss has blamed a rise in the number of people working from home for the first hosepipe ban of the summer. South East Water, which supplies more than two million homes and businesses, will impose the first hosepipe ban of the summer from Monday, affecting households across Kent and Sussex.

The company’s chief executive David Hinton claimed that people working from home was a “key factor” behind the ban, as it has “increased drinking water demand”.

In a letter to customers, he wrote: “Over the past three years the way in which drinking water is being used across the south east has changed considerably.

“The rise of working from home has increased drinking water demand in commuter towns by around 20 per cent over a very short period, testing our existing infrastructure.”

snip

[elleng]

1. NOT the Onion?

Does the Onion visit UK???

[LeftishBrit]

9. The British equivalent of the Onion is called Newsthump

On water companies and their cock-ups:

https://newsthump.com/2023/06/30/capital-of-world-beating-freebooting-nation-really-hopes-it-will-still-have-running-water-on-monday/?mc_cid=c0f4904a0f&mc_eid=a83361529c


https://newsthump.com/2023/06/28/to-fix-sewage-pollution-crisis-well-need-to-raise-executive-bonuses-by-40-insist-water-companies/

[muriel_volestrangler]

10. That first one's really biting

and the ad I was served with while looking at them? "Water Well Drilling Services".

[marble falls]

2. Because they don't drink water in a workplace, only at home???

[Chainfire]

3. But at work they drink bottled water. ;)

[marble falls]

4. I use the bubbler. if it's being provided by a local company those jugs are filled from a tap ...

... from city after some sort of "filtering".

[Chainfire]

5. Thus the smiley face at the end of my post.

[marble falls]

6. I'm getting to old for subtlty. I don't even remember it.

[T_i_B]

7. In my experience...

...I drink a lot more tea and coffee when at the office than when working from home. That consumes more water to more energy and causes me to spend more time peeing as a result, which also consumes water when I flush.

So I would say the exact opposite of the water company, that my experience is that I use more water in the office than when I'm working from home.

[muriel_volestrangler]

8. But for men, peeing in urinals typically doesn't increase water use

if they are, as most British ones are, on an automatic flush schedule. Whereas using your toilet at home does mean an extra flush each time you use it. So I can see there could be a small rise in use when working at home, though 20% seems large - only half the population, far from everyone's working at home, not everyone uses urinals at work etc.