Running out or flooded out? London's water crisis

Water is essential for our city to function. However, London’s growing population and ageing pipes, combined with a changing and increasingly extreme climate, means that our water resources are under growing pressure. We all remember the Beast from the East in 2018, and the flooding and water outages that arose as a result of pipes freezing, thawing and bursting. Similarly, we are having increasingly dry summers and unexpected heatwaves, meaning that we cannot continue to rely on rainwater to replenish water stocks.

We simply cannot afford to wait before taking necessary action. Water shortages are far more likely than people might expect: the Environment Agency has warned that within just 25 years, the South East of England could run out of water.1 Further, the cost of a severe drought to London’s economy is estimated by Thames Water to be £330 m per day, and would have severe economic, social and environmental consequences.