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UK water reuse system stays off due to drinking water rules
The scheme at Cambridge Water's Eddington development has been ready since 2021 but is still switched off, even as drought drives hosepipe bans in the region.
The Guardian reports that the UK’s largest water reuse system, installed at Cambridge Water’s Eddington urban quarter in Cambridgeshire, has remained switched off since it was made ready in 2021 because drinking water regulations restrict its operation.
According to the report, the system could save about 25 litres per person per day by using recycled rainwater for non-drinking purposes, but the Drinking Water Inspectorate has deemed it not in line with the law.
The article says the block is complicating efforts by water companies to expand large-scale recycling in new developments, as England faces worsening water scarcity and the Greater Cambridgeshire area is among the most water-scarce regions.
During this summer’s drought, Cambridge Water and neighboring Anglian Water imposed hosepipe bans after reservoir levels fell, while experts warn that unresolved legal barriers are hampering plans to scale water recycling to address shortages by 2055.