Using an approximation on inhabitant numbers across the present Hampshire and West Sussex area as it stands today ie not counting all the thousands of housing planned but not yet built…

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If around 1.7 million people across our region stopped drinking tap water and switched to bottled water, the impact would be staggering. Taking this figure…

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Per Person x 2 bottles per day = 3.4 million plastic bottles every day

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3.4 million x 365 days = 1,241,000,000 bottles per year

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This equates to 37,000 tonnes of plastic and 150,000 tonnes of CO₂ a year – the same climate impact as over 100,000 cars on the road.”

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This equates to the same weight as: 

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​If you stacked all those bottles for one day they would equate to:

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This equates to around £750 per person per year.

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And where would all this clean water come from?

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Our region simply does not have the capacity to supply it.

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Nearly all bottled water would have to be imported from other parts of the UK

(or abroad) creating a huge, unnecessary environmental footprint and

major supply-chain pressure.

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If Southern Water gains planning permission by this government to roll out

the ‘reverse osmosis’ system starting at Sandown, Isle of Wight -  it will inevitably be

taken up by ALL THE OTHER WATER COMPANIES across the UK.

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What then is the impact on the capability to produce sufficient bottled water

for the entire nation?   

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Tap water isn’t just cheaper.

It’s climate-smart, plastic-free and locally secure. It flows safely from our taps.