Whilst, on one hand, Thames Water consistently comments on planning applications that it has…
‘no problem supplying water and dealing with floodwater and sewage to new housing developments’ – it now dares, yes dares, to warn of “serious water shortages.”
No water? It must be August? Here’s one we wrote this time last year!
Water, water everywhere (most of the time) – but not a drop to drink in Cranleigh and Ewhurst?
Instead of sucking up to Dishi Rishi in the hope of Ministerial appointments- our two MPs – Jeremy Hunt and Angie Richardson – should be dealing with the real issues faced by their constituents in the areas they represent. Here are a couple of headlines for them to digest over their cornflakes.
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No water for some homes and schools in Guildford due to a ‘technical issue’ on the Thames Water network
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In Haslemere, elderly residents were some of the worst affected as engineers battled the problem at Blackdown Reservoir. Homeowners do not know when water will return to normal and are being given free water bottles.
Anne Hack, (pictured above) whose friends helped her collect the bottles from a Tesco, said:
‘The water came on briefly last night about 2 am but it was like brown mud. Since then I have been coping until I came down here to get some water.’
The 79-year-old retired singer added: ‘We were not notified. It’s all on social media but when you are my age you do not go on social media. There should be a programme for older people, more liaisons, we pay hefty bills.‘
according to this week’s Farnham Herald, printed before he received a knock-out blow, …
“is the chance to unlock UK’s potential.”
Well, Jeremy, how about unlocking some of the nonsense spouted by the drips at Thames Water? An outfit that consistently tells Waverley Planners they can manage new developments, that are currently gushing through the planning system faster than a burst water main?
Perhaps fellow Tory MP Angie Richardson could stop using the Cranleigh Flood Forum as a picture opportunity. Every picture tells a story as the Private Cranleigh Flood Forum gathers. Instead of peering into the nearest lense, she should open up her very infrequent Flood Forum meetings to the long-suffering public dogged by burst water mains in Cranleigh and Ewhurst one day, only to receive messages from Thames Water (TW) warning of …
Serious water shortages, the next!
She just might then hang on by her knicker elastic to her very marginal Guildford & villages parliamentary seat?
Finally, Waverley Cllr Liz Townsend who has been battling for years to get TW to step up and stem the tide from burst pipes gushing down local roads @thameswater has finally managed to get the water company to start telling the truth about the parlous state of water supplies in Waverley.
Here’s its latest WARNING! As, the newly appointed Thames Water CEO, Sarah Bentley, will receive a pension allowance of 12 per cent of her annual salary of £750,000.
She will be able to participate in the company’s existing annual bonus scheme of up to a maximum of 120 per cent of her salary, and a long-term incentive plan with an annual award of up to a maximum of 200 per cent of her salary.
Don’t tell the public TW!- Tell Waverley Planners and all those insidious Inspectors and developers who ignore basic infrastructure requirements in Godalming, Haslemere and the eastern villages?
A couple of days ago Waverley Cllr Liz Townsend had to remind a developer’s consultant, posing as a Waverley planning officer, that he had omitted to include a planning condition on Thames Water to cover the 36 home extension to the Knowle Park Initiative site in Alfold Road, Cranleigh!
After years of TW ignoring water and flooding issues in the Waverley Borough, Cllr Townsend has persuaded the water company to tell it as it is. Bursts and all? She says, at last, it has informed customers of the serious water shortages in our area that are widespread.
She says:
The Government and its local MP’s have to take this issue seriously #ClimateEmergency
Just a thought, it is in a water company’s interest to have new homes built so that they can charge water rates, whether they are able to actually supply water or not.
All dwellings built since the Local Plan Part 1 should have been designed with a water consumption of 110 litres per person. Whereas the average consumption in WBC is approximately 150 litres per person. The Local Plan Part 2 Sustainability Appraisal supports the proposed LPP2 developments on the basis of delivered and future dwelling water consumption of 110 litres per person per day.
“Policy ‘CC2 Sustainable Construction and Design’ in LPP1 contains a requirement to ensure that all new dwellings shall meet the requirement of 110 litres of water per person per day. It is further noted in the supporting text to Policy CC2 of LPP1 that this is in keeping with tighter building regulations than can be enforced where there is a clear local need and that this need has been demonstrated in Waverley.”
“Water stress and the higher than average levels of water consumption in the Borough (160-170 litres per person per day) is anticipated to drive efforts to ensure water minimisation. Of note National Planning Practice Guidance states that, where there is clear local need, Local Plan policies can require new dwellings to meet the tighter Building Regulations option of 110 litres per person per day. It is important to note that Policy CC2 within LPP1 has a requirement that all new dwellings in the Borough are to meet these stricter building regulations.”
Wise Planning decisions consider the infrastructure and cumulative impact.
Anyone seen the latest Thames Water TV Ad? Spouting the usual nonsense about how good they are at plugging leaks.