Keeping Scotland hydrated in the heat – July 2022
As you will all be aware, many parts of Scotland are expected to see record high temperatures during the course of tomorrow, following on from very warm weather today and in recent days.
Scottish Water teams have been preparing and are working hard across the country to support customers and communities that are affected by the hot weather. As ever, if there is a service issue affecting customers, Scottish Water can be contacted 24/7 via any of the details at www.scottishwater.co.uk/help-and-resources/contact-us/contacting-us. If there are issues that you need to raise on behalf of the communities you represent, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with our team and we will do all we can to assist.
Stay hydrated and stay safe
Our primary focus today and tomorrow is on alerting customers in areas that are experiencing very hot weather to the importance of hydration in staying safe.
Our Your Water Your Life campaign, supported by our growing network of Top up Taps across the country, encourages people to enjoy Scotland’s drinking water – including by carrying a refillable water bottle when they are out and about.
Whether topping up at home, at work, at a local business or from a Top up Tap, we know that having access to drinking water is especially important in these conditions. Staying hydrated is essential – and using a refillable water bottle also saves money and helps the environment.
How you can help
- You can find your nearest Top up Tap here
- Please share this message on twitter if you can
- Read about our partnership with Age Scotland to improve the way we support some of our most vulnerable customers
Reducing unnecessary water use
We’re urging people across the country to help maintain normal water supplies by reducing unnecessary water use, especially outdoors.
Even before the current hot weather arrived, over the second weekend in July customers used an additional 200 million litres in their homes and gardens – the equivalent of 100 Olympic-sized swimming pools more than normal.
Everyone can help take care of drinking water for its most important purpose and protect the environment by:
- Using a watering can or water butt instead of a garden hose / sprinkler – hoses can use 1000 litres per hour (equivalent of 12 baths)
- Watering plants early in the morning or later in the evening – and avoiding watering lawns which recover quickly from dry weather
- Using a bucket and sponge rather than a hose / jet washer to wash the car
- Avoiding filling up large paddling pools which can take thousands of litres – as well as re-using any water in them where you can
How you can help
Respect our reservoirs – and know the risks
Alongside our emergency services and other partners, we know that these conditions significantly increase the risk of serious water safety incidents around our coasts and inland – including at many of the reservoirs that we look after.
In the hottest weather, the hazards of deep, cold water are easily underestimated – but even the strongest swimmers can be affected by cold water shock. There is a lot of research showing that we are all prone to thinking that it won’t happen to us, but tragically it does happen. We work all year round with Water Safety Scotland and a wide range of organisations to raise awareness; as well as with our long term partners Scottish Swimming to making young people aware of the risks and give them basic survival skills.
How you can help
- Please consider sharing this hard-hitting video produced by our colleagues at Dwr Cymru (Welsh Water) particular targeted at young adults and their families
- Read about our long term partnership with Scottish Swimming in support of their Learn to Swim programme here
- The Royal Life Saving Society has produced an online Water Safety Toolkit for families which can be accessed here
You are receiving this message because we have you listed as a contact for a Community Council in the north of Scotland. Apologies for any inconvenience if this is not correct – please let us know and we will update our records.
Kind regards,
Gavin Steel
Corporate Affairs Manager (North)
Phone: 07484 517674