England faces a 5 billion litre a day shortfall for public water supplies by 2055 – and a further 1 billion litre a day deficit for wider economy, according to a report by the Environment Agency (EA)(1).

The agency recommends urgent action to futureproof resources and in SaveMoneyCutCarbon’s view, UK businesses play a big role in the water conservation strategies.

The EA advises that climate change, population growth, and environmental pressures are hitting supplies with predicted shortfalls equivalent to a third of current daily use – or the volume of 4.5 Wembley Stadiums. A  billion litres more a day will also be needed to generate energy, grow food, and power emerging technologies1.  

The EA’s National Framework for Water Resources, published every five years, sets out the actions required by water companies, regulators, businesses, and the public to best manage water usage into the future(2).  

The EA expects 60% of the deficit to be addressed by water companies managing demand and dramatically reducing leaks. The remaining 40% would come from boosting supply, including the building of new reservoirs and water transfer schemes.  

Further recommendations and actions include:  

• Leakage: The EA will continue to work with financial regulator Ofwat on water company pledges to cut leakage by 17% in the next five years and by 50% by 2050.  

• Smart meters: Water companies have committed to the vital rollout of ten million more smart meters to help customers understand how much they use – and reveal where wastage may be in their homes and businesses. The average person on a meter uses 122 litres per day, compared to 171 litres without.  

• Efficiency labelling: Household appliances, such as dishwashers, toilets, and showers, can be more efficient and the EA will continue to work with Government on a mandatory efficiency labelling scheme. 

• Infrastructure: Water company plans includes nine new desalination schemes, 10 new reservoirs and seven new water recycling schemes by 2050.  

Emerging industries, such as data centres and hydrogen production, require vast amounts of water to cool their systems and the EA wants businesses to explore more options for using non-potable water1.  Additional changes are also needed for some practices – water extraction from rivers, lakes, and groundwater for public and business use. The EA wants more sustainable solutions.

SaveMoneyCutCarbon advises that businesses can implement a range of measures to reduce water consumption, cutting both bills and carbon emissions.

Water Audit: First step would be identifying the current water consumption of the business property. An annual summary of water consumption from the water supplier is the base. This gives a global snapshot of water consumption and may signal that  consumption is higher than expected levels.

Then a full site audit would identify water fittings with flow rates and flush volume, Assumptions on usage can be made, or monitoring and measurement technology can be deployed if there is a specific requirement for highly accurate data.

The audit scope would include:

·      Taps and showers

·      Toilets and urinals

·      Water involved with catering or manufacturing

·      Tanks and building supply

·      Leaks

·      Washroom control systems

·      Usage and behaviour

The audit would develop a baseline around:

·      How often the assets are used each day and how long

·      How many people use the building

·      How many days the building is open per year

·      Price paid  for water, gas and electricity

A good audit report should put forward investment grade proposals with return on investment calculations. Financial modelling should be simple with payback models and criteria for scheduling actions.

Project proposals should have scope of works which include information on the products specified. The products should be efficient and offer linear savings, or assist in the mitigation of water waste. Typical products may include:

·      Aerators on taps to reduce their flow rate

·      Sensor or push button taps to prevent water waste

·      Eco shower heads that reduce flow rate

·      Controls that reduce urinal flushing and water waste

·      Waterless urinals

·      Low flush toilets

·      Leak detection and prevention equipment

·      Flow monitoring equipment

Business benefits from small changes

Tap aerators are a cost-effective way fo addressing water management and they  can decrease water usage by up to two-thirds. As a bonus they can reduce the amount of hot water used, lower energy bills for heating water. And by reducing water consumption, aerators contribute to water conservation and lower CO2 emissions. 

Water displacement bags are an effective and simple way to reduce water consumption in UK homes by displacing water in the toilet cistern. They are inexpensive, easy to install, zero maintenance and can save 1 litre of water each time the toilet is flushed. As well as aiming to reduce water bills, they csn also help to reduce carbon footprint. 

Medium projects

Toilets: Ultra-low flow toilets can reduce water usage by 75%. Low flow toilets and specialist valve solutions can reduce water by 50%. Mitigating water wastage caused by leaking cisterns is significant and getting this addressed can also deliver further efficiency savings

Urinals: Controls added onto existing urinal cisterns can reduce water usage by up to 75%. For example, two urinals sharing a 5 litre cistern would see reductions of 164,000 litres per year, with savings from £400 – £600.

Waterless urinals: Waterless urinals reduce water consumption by 100%. This can add savings in the region of £250 per urinal per year. Waterless urinals also prevent leaks and urinal floods.

Shower heads:  Low-flow shower heads can reduce water consumption by more than 50% in many areas.

Larger projects

Rainwater harvesting: Reusing rainwater to supply water appliances in a building is a form of integrated water management. It reduces a building’s dependency on purchased water. Purchased water is expensive, and water bills only ever rise in cost over time. From a financial perspective, it makes sense to utilise rainwater, but this is not the only benefit(3).

Rainwater harvesting is a system to capture the rainwater that collects on the roof of a building and utilise it to supply water appliances within a building. The basic principle of rainwater is very simple. Rainwater runs off the roof down the gutters and into a filter system before entering a holding tank. The water held in the tank is then pumped out and used for flushing toilets or pressure washing etc. If the holding tank is full the water overflows to a storm drain. If the holding tank gets low, it automatically tops up with towns mains.

Water treatment and processing is incredibly energy intensive and comes with an environmental cost and resulting carbon footprint. Any business or organisation required to report on decarbonisation initiatives should take this into account. In the Streamlined Energy and Carbon Reporting framework it is recognised as a Scope 3 indirect emission, also commonly described as ‘embodied carbon’, meaning the water supplied carries an energy trail within it. Capturing rainwater should help a business save money and cut carbon. 

Bibliography

1 ’England faces 5 billion litre public water shortage by 2055 without urgent action’ (Accessed June 2025) https://www.gov.uk/government/news/england-faces-5-billion-litre-public-water-shortage-by-2055-without-urgent-action

2 ‘National Framework for Water Resources 2025: water for growth, nature and a resilient future’ (Accessed June 2025) https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-framework-for-water-resources-2025-water-for-growth-nature-and-a-resilient-future

3 ‘Rainwater harvesting – an introduction’ (Accessed June 2025) https://www.savemoneycutcarbon.com/learn-save/rainwater-harvesting-an-introduction/