Research Shows Water Shutoff Ban Saves Lives
Apr 30, 2021
Research highlighted at the latest Water Action Platform webinar shows nearly half a million Covid-19 infections could have been prevented in the US alone if there had been a nationwide ban on water shutoffs. The global issue of water shutoffs and disconnections during the pandemic was brought into stark focus at the online event hosted by Isle chairman, Dr Piers Clark, which took place on 15 April.
In 2020, water utilities and municipalities around the world started holding back their plans to cut off non-payers amid concerns a lack of access to critical water and sanitation could escalate the rising pandemic.
The research carried out by Cornell University and Food & Water Watch found that states in the USA which suspended disconnections had significantly reduced growth rates of Covid-19. If similar policies had been adopted across the country, the study model estimates that almost 500,000 cases of Covid-19 would have been prevented.
“Before the pandemic, protections from water shutoffs were rare in the US,” said Clark, “but on 9 March 2020, Detroit became the first US city to pause water shutoffs and temporarily reconnect water services for all residents. This action sparked a wave of moratoria nationally, with more than 800 localities and states following Detroit’s lead.”
The Cornell researchers ran a regression model and concluded that water shutoff bans decreased the daily infection growth rate by 0.235% and the death growth rate by 0.135%. Modelling showed a similar moratorium on water shutoffs nationwide could have saved around 480,000 people from Covid-19 infection and almost 10,000 lives.
This research demonstrates the critical impact of access to water, especially during a public health crisis, and makes a clear case for national strategies to ensure water and sanitation services are accessible for low-income households.
Efficiency through innovation
Access to water is vitally important for health, businesses and communities. So how can the water sector can meet regulatory water efficiency targets, while delivering benefits for customers and the environment?
The Water Action Platform webinar also explored research and technologies that address water efficiency issues and shared learnings from utilities in the UK and Spain about tackling water efficiency during the pandemic and beyond.
Creative EC, a UK company, showcased a product called Waterfall – a smart meter which generates detailed insight into water usage by collecting water event and billing-grade consumption data from domestic and commercial customers. Waterfall applies the principles of the internet of things (IoT), cloud technology and machine learning to uncover and use powerful data on water usage events in individual properties for the first time.
“This rich data set provides incredibly detailed insights into the nature of water consumption, allowing water companies to encourage customer water efficiency using techniques like behavioural analytics, gamification and nudge theory,” said Clark.
Securing London's water
With improvements of up to 40% required to reach the UK Government’s per capita consumption (PCC) targets, research shows reductions can be most effectively achieved through a combination of customer behaviour changes alongside utilities addressing leakage and unmetered flows. As the largest water provider in the UK, by population, the biggest challenge Thames Water faces is from population growth and development.
Andrew Tucker, Thames’ water efficiency manager, presented water efficiency data for London which has been generated through its ambitious smart meter programme rollout.
“Quite simply we do not have enough water for the future. We need new water resources to come in and we need to bring demand down,” explained Tucker. “The more knowledgeable we can be, the more detailed we can be able what is happening to our water, the better we will be able to manage this precious resource.”
As part of its drive to tackle this issue, Tucker provided an update on Thames Water’s ongoing smart meter programme rollout to every household and business in its region. Over 500,000 smart meters were installed to 21 March and Thames is now receiving millions of meter readings per day.
“With manual meter reads we were getting around one million a year. With smart meter reads we’ve leapt to 11 million a day. We have gone from a traditional water company to a big data company overnight. Our key focus now is using data, turning it into insight and putting it into action to drive demand reduction,” added Tucker.
Get involved
Hosted by global technology and business consultancy Isle, this marks the one-year anniversary of the Water Action Platform, a global initiative that brings water companies together to share knowledge and innovation across the world.
The next Water Action Platform webinar takes place on Thursday 20 May at 7.30am and 4.30pm BST. Click here to sign up to receive the invitation.
More News and Articles
Mar 29, 2023
News
Water management: Spain invests nearly 23 billion euros
The Spanish government improves its water management and will invest nearly 23 billion euros to comply with European Water Directives.
Mar 27, 2023
News
UN World Water Day 2023: How municipalities can accelerate the water transformation
The United Nations is proclaiming the motto “Accelerating Change” for World Water Day on 22 March. The message: because the pressure on drinking water reserves is increasing worldwide, the change towards sustainable water use must be accelerated.
Mar 24, 2023
News
Innovative technologies remove pharmaceutical residues from wastewater
Every year on 22 March, World Water Day reminds us of the importance of one of the most important resources of life. Almost two-thirds of our planet is covered with water, but not even three percent is drinkable freshwater. Every …
Mar 22, 2023
Article
Delivering sustainable solutions to solve water challenges
With British Water’s conference on creating a more sustainable water sector approaching, Stephen Kennedy, head of digital and innovation at MWH Treatment shares his views on celebrating recent successes in creating a more sustainable sector while also discussing the challenge …
Mar 20, 2023
News
Supporting the National Water Strategy through scientific research
This month, the federal government of Germany introduced the first National Water Strategy. “With this strategy, the federal government is shining a spotlight on the necessity of integrated water resource management, serving as a leading example of resource use in …
Mar 17, 2023
News
Trenchless manufacturer celebrates installation of 100,000th liner
SAERTEX multiCom®’s trenchless pipe relining product, SAERTEX-LINER, has been installed for the 100,000th time.
Mar 15, 2023
News
Versatile electric pipe-cutter makes UK debut
The first all-electric battery-operated lateral pipe-cutter to enter the UK market has secured sole distribution with pipeline equipment specialist Ant Hire Solutions.
Mar 13, 2023
News
Spring collaborates with Microsoft and Impact X on water innovation
The water sector’s innovation centre of excellence – Spring - is collaborating with Microsoft and Impact X on a new initiative to make tools and funding available for start-ups to accelerate their companies.
Mar 10, 2023
Article
State of Global Water Resources report informs on rivers, land water storage and glaciers
WMO reports on freshwater availability in a changing climate
Mar 08, 2023
News
Australia: Centenarian sewer gets after-dark upgrade
Over 100 years since its inception, Brisbane’s S1 Main Sewer has undergone a seven-year upgrade.
Mar 06, 2023
News
UKWIR gives access to hundreds of water sector research reports
UK Water Industry Research (UKWIR) is providing free access to over 1,000 of its water sector research reports aimed at helping to improve water and wastewater services for customers, and protecting the environment.
Mar 03, 2023
News
Sector must challenge public misconceptions through engagement
The water sector must tackle “unfair criticisms” by sharing more about the great work it delivers, Yorkshire Water’s chief executive, Nicola Shaw, told attendees at British Water’s Better Together reception in Hull.
Contact
Isle Utilities
Megan Ford
Camelford House | 87-90 Albert Embankment
SE1 7TW London
United Kingdom