Question: Water utilities in England and Wales are privatized. it common?
BUT: Not quite – even in Scotland there is a state-run water objects. it’s unusual for water supply should be run completely private. Many European countries, such as France, have their own utilities run on private-public partnerships. In other countries such as Spain, issue somewhat degraded with some cities served private companies and everything else of country public water supply.
Supporters of public properties say that water is such an important resource that should to be accountability. AT government should be able to take control in a crisis. Some point to a rather strange situation we have in England where government calls on water companies to supply in hose bansbut powerless force them to do so – and they refuse.
Q: So UK government Can not force water companies to do something. What does it mean for supply?
BUT: AT grand idea behind privatization is that it brings profit that can be plowed back into infrastructure, giving us shiny new pipes, cargo of tanks and absolutely no leaks. Obviously, this did not happen – the shareholders became incredibly rich. off in back of water companies in England and Wales because a lot of profits are used to pay them, not to update our infrastructure.
Angling Trust is campaigning for new reservoirs so we don’t have to constantly suck up our precious chalk streams, but last time when there was a large reservoir built was before privatization.
tanks expensive to build and it would be cost billions to update our pipes to stop them from flowing. This led in us have an infrastructure that has been built support population of a few decades ago, not more one we have now.
B: So in France, where only 9000 people served exclusively private water companies, not public-private partnerships or public companies, they must be absolutely floating in water?
BUT: Not really. This year France was hit hit hard by European drought and imposed water restrictions in place countrywide. This is partly because of in public control of the water that government can do it, but they also things are much worse in terms of supply.
This week, 100 villages were left without running water, meaning they had to get their water from parked government tanks. in urban centers.
France is a big country and it hard in best of times to move water around from wetter to drier places, especially when issue transmitted, and you have different municipalities treat water differently.
Q: What about leaks? How bad we are compared to others countries?
BUT: The leak is problem throughout Europe. As well as private companies do not want to copy up roads to replace pipes, government also want save money and not cause violation. Italian government ministers recently announced that up up to 42 percent of the water supply is lost through the pipes. In England it’s about quarter, according to a recent analysis. In Ireland, where water is nationalized, Dublin recently topped the leaderboard. of largest leak of any European city.
In it cheaper for countries with less privatization?
BUT: When government has some control over water supply, this could keep prices from spiraling out of control. Italy, for for example, there is a hybrid system of public and private water utilities. The average monthly water bill is €20, which is about £17. In England it is £34.
However, the water is very low in Italy according to the OECD, and the Italians seem to have a hands-off approach to their supplies – they have highest use in Europe in over 200 liters per day per capita. This is about 150 liters per day. in England.
