Liquid gold

Water-saving projects scoop prizes The Environment Agency Water Efficiency Awards are all about the true value of what come out of our taps. At Sheepdrove Organic Farm, this year’s overall winner, they’re now extracting 10% less water per year and saving a nice £230,000 as well. That’s because they’re getting nature’s environmental services to deal with their dirty water. Once the wastewater from the farm has passed through two reedbeds, an aerating cascade, two ponds and a lake, it’s even clean enough to swim in. There are clear biodiversity benefits too. “Wildlife thrives in the new reedbed system, from tiny microbes cleaning the water, to dragonflies and ducks,” enthuses Sheepdrove’s Jason Ball. The farm has maximised savings by re-using water from the lake to irrigate trees and fill pig wallows. Further back up the water chain, devices like timed-stop taps and dual-flush toilets also help minimise the flow. Among the other award winners, Hampshire Water Partnership has started holding ‘water festivals’, where punters have been snapping up water saving devices, as well as taking the pledge to turn off the tap while they’re brushing their teeth. And the brewers George Gale & Co are using 25% less water to make their beer. Their new system, in which the water used for cooling is recycled as hot water for the next day’s brewing, has apparently made Happy Hog beer taste even better too. - Hannah Bullock

17 June 2005

Hannah Bullock