Following News OnTheWight’s article yesterday (Monday) revealing the number of failures related to Southern Water (SW) infrastructure being at “an unprecedented and unsustainable level“, the utility company has responded.
A report compiled by Island Roads warned that “urgent action is required to reduce the number of leaks and the number of immediate urgent works”.
3m litres of water leaked every day
Cllr Richard Quigley, the Labour councillor for Cowes North, also told News OnTheWight that there were over 800 instances between May and August where the roads had to be dug up for urgent water main repairs and that three million litres of water is lost from the Island’s water system every single day.
SW: Heavy traffic and heavy machinery can play a part
A spokesperson for Southern Water said,
“Pipes can burst for a variety of reasons – increasingly heavy traffic and of course, the use of heavy machinery as roads are upgraded, can both play a part.
“We act quickly when a burst does occur to restore service to customers as soon as possible and ensure the road is reinstated after repairs are complete.”
SW: So important that we work together
Island Roads had pointed out that leaks and burst water mains were the cause of disruption, needing emergency road closures. The Southern Water spokesperson added,
“We recognise that the highway improvements can be disruptive to our water mains, which is why it is so important that we work together to minimise inconvenience to people.”
Island Roads also claimed in their report that early in the PFI contract someone from SW would attend (quarterly) their operational meetings, but that after a key member of SW staff departed, these meetings have stopped, despite regular requests from Island Roads.
Claims for damage to roads
Island Roads also argued that despite being able to claim back costs related to damage caused to highway infrastructure by leaking utility apparatus, “no acknowledgement of any claim or acceptance that any damage has been caused as a result of their leaking apparatus, has been accepted”.
In response the SW spokesperson said,
“We assess all claims on the evidence provided and respond appropriately.”
Investment in acoustic loggers
As part of their programme to prevent burst water mains, the spokesperson explained,
“We have just commenced the rollout of a new technological approach to preventing bursts with the installation of ‘internet of things’ acoustic loggers across the network and the Island will benefit from this £135 million programme.
“These devices detect the tell-tale hiss of a leak so we can act before the pipe fails completely ensuring uninterrupted service for customers and cutting the amount of water wasted via leaks.”
SW: Investing heavily
Although Island Roads pointed out the “extreme fragility of the supply network”, and that the number of main replacement works has fallen to its lowest level on record, Southern Water were keen to point out the investment they are making on the Island,
“Southern Water invests heavily to replace and maintain its assets including water network on the Isle of Wight where we supply up to 42 million litres of water a day.
“Our rolling programme of mains replacements targets areas most in need such as the recent £400,000 Staplers Road, Newport replacement scheme, replacement of the Cowes to Newport water main and works to replace mains in the Ashley Road area of Ryde.
“To continually improve our service to customers, between 2020 and 2025 we are spending £31,400,000 on the water supply system on the Island including an £11 million refurbishment of the Sandown supply works and £7.7 million on networks around Cowes, Newport and Brading.”
