Kent Water Crisis Could Have Been Prevented

Tens of thousands of people around Tunbridge Wells spent two weeks without safe drinking water at the end of last year — and the watchdog says the collapse was visible weeks earlier. A fault at the Pembury treatment works left about 24,000 homes either without water or under a boil notice from 30 November. Initially taps ran dry; then residents were told the supply was unsafe for drinking, giving to pets, brushing teeth, or bathing children and anyone with open wounds. The Drinking Water Inspectorate (DWI) says the trouble began on 9 November, when staff noticed a marked decline in the plant’s performance. Inspectors told MPs the company failed to carry out tests the regulator had asked for, and did not fit a filter designed to prevent harmful metals reaching the clean-water tank. At the heart of the breakdown was a coagulant chemical used in purification. DWI officials believe that, with the correct testing and data, the original chemical would have continued to work. South East Water last carried out those full checks in July and was relying on manual data collection rather than an electronic monitoring system that could have caught the drift sooner. The Pembury works is old and is the only treatment plant serving Tunbridge Wells. It has been under an enforcement notice since last year due to risks from bacteria and pesticide contamination. That single-point vulnerability, the regulator warned, made the town particularly exposed. South East Water’s chief executive described the incident as an “unexpected” shift in raw water chemistry not seen in two decades and pointed to recent drought and more time spent at home as adding pressure to the network. He also said having only one plant was a consequence of current infrastructure rules and argued for updated standards. The DWI highlighted another problem: it has limited tools to force fixes. It required the company to install a microfiltration unit to block residual aluminium — but the unit has not been fitted and the regulator says current laws give it no further sanctioning power for this kind of shortfall. The episode has come amid wider strain at South East Water, which last year sought a £200m lifeline from investors after being placed on a regulator’s watchlist over its finances. That financial fragility, combined with ageing single assets and constrained regulatory powers, makes this more than a local outage — it’s a warning shot about how prepared Britain’s water system is for shocks. South East Water has been contacted for comment. --- Managing your business finances? TaxAce provides smart online accountancy services for UK businesses with flexible monthly plans. Image and reporting: https://www.theguardian.com | Read original article