Almost a third of Brits admit they waste water, claims survey

A poll of 2,000 adults found a quarter have showers for longer than 10 minutes each, while 45 per cent don’t turn the taps off when brushing their teeth.

Nearly a third admitted to knowingly wasting water, with 29 per cent letting the tap run before it reaches the desired temperature. And 29 per cent even flush the toilet unnecessarily.

It also emerged three in 10 think their partner is the worst for using water unnecessarily at home, but a quarter admit they are the ones who do this most often. Of the 25 per cent who believe it’s unlikely we’ll ever run out of water, half reckon it’s because of our country’s wet and rainy climate.

Other reasons include having enough water supplies (38 per cent) and the country never experiencing droughts (39 per cent).

The daily average household use in the UK is 143 litres – that’s 33 litres more than the government target of 110 litres.

If action is not taken, to address the impact of climate change and increased demand for water. The Environment Agency has warned the UK could potentially face water shortages by 2050 if current trends continue.

It comes after a separate survey of 500 6-10-year-olds found 26 per cent of little ones believed household water comes from the sea, while 24 per cent think it gets delivered to their house.

Despite this, a third correctly said it comes from places such as reservoirs while 34 per cent rightly identified rivers, streams and lakes.

The research was commissioned by the Finish and WWF partnership, which has created the The Journey of Water – a story from children’s author Catherine Coe, which tells the tale of the Water Wizard as he takes three children on an adventure to discover the sources of freshwater.

Says Conor Linstead, WWF spokesperson:

“As the water we use at home in the UK either comes directly from natural freshwater habitats, or indirectly affects them, how we use it really matters.

“Many freshwater sources such as rivers, lakes and wetlands are already affected by unsustainable water use at home and the impact of climate change could put further strains on these habitats.”