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Anorak News | Water Log

Water Log

by | 2nd, June 2005

‘CURSE Tony Blair’s weather machine. No sooner has he settled into another stint to prime ministering than he’s turned the taps off.

Let them drink beer

Things are not yet so bad that film crews from African TV companies are descending on Melton Mowbray to report on the drought.

Ethiopians will not be shown heart-wrenching pictures of parched Britishers drinking tea from thimble-sized cups, but things are bad.

The Independent says that we are in the midst of one of the worst droughts for 40 years, and thanks to an unusually dry winter, water companies are ready to issue their dreaded hosepipe bans.

Indeed, one company, Sutton and East Surrey, has told its customers to stop using unattended hosepipes immediately. Another, Southern Water, is planning to follow that lead and announce its first ban since 1996.

A further ten of the country’s 23 water companies are already warning their customers of the need to save water.

And we are not alone. The Indy says that Portugal has endured its worst winter drought for three centuries, Spain has experienced it lowest winter rainfall for 60 years and France is feeling the effects of similar problems to those in the UK.

The paper laments the scarcity of water, and then offers advice on how we can help reduce our intake of it.

Turn off the tap when brushing your teeth, it says. Take a shower and not a bath. Wash you car with bucket instead of a spray. Drink champagne.

Or else, you can choose not to follow the Dutch and the French and when offered the chance to vote “yes” to the European constitution.

This will appease Mr Blair, and, as if my magic, the rains will fall.

Or else, you could just buy the stuff in bottles, like the better people do…’



Posted: 2nd, June 2005 | In: Uncategorized Comment | TrackBack | Permalink