A review found that South West Water’s drinking water remains exceptionally high quality and safe to drink, but raised serious concerns about the company’s wider performance. Overall environmental performance was described as “poor”, while water supply disruptions were said to be among the worst in the industry.
Drinking water remains safe
A separate report from the Drinking Water Inspectorate, the Environment Agency, Natural Resources Wales and Ofwat said the quality of South West Water’s drinking water “continues to be exceptional and consumers can be confident that their water is safe to drink”.
Although the company’s performance on internal sewer flooding has deteriorated, South West Water said it “remains performing better than the industry average”.
However, the overall environmental performance was described as “poor”.
Concern over supply disruptions
In its summary, the report said overall water supply disruptions “remain a significant concern and represent one of the worst performances in the industry.”
South West Water said it needs to reduce disruptions, address the root causes of failures and complete a transformation programme that “significantly improves customer interactions and the overall experience.”
Campaigners criticise review
Surfers Against Sewage described the latest performance review as “another embarrassment for the water company”, adding that it was “just a slap on the wrist that makes no sense whatsoever”.
Campaign director Joe Morley said: “What’s the point of these environmental performance reviews when the behavior of water companies is getting worse every year?”
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Source: www.bbc.co.uk
