§ 49. Mr. Madelasked the Secretary of State for the Environment whether any research is being undertaken at present in relation to the construction of a national water grid; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. John SilkinThe development of inter-regional transfers of water on an increasing scale is something that we take very seriously. Work is going ahead on the follow up to the Water Resources Board's report on water resources in England and Wales, and the proposals in the consultation document on the water review for a strengthened central authority are highly relevant to this longer-term issue.
§ Mr. Hardyasked the Secretary of State for the Environment what was the aver- 198W age cost of providing 1,000 gallons of water in England and Wales in 1975.
§ Mr. John SilkinThe average cost of providing 1,000 gallons of water in England and Wales in 1975–76 was 45p.
§ Mr. Hardyasked the Secretary of State for the Environment what is his estimate of the consumption of water per person in England and Wales in 1975; and how this compares with the amount consumed 10 and 20 years earlier.
§ Mr. John SilkinThe average consumption of water taken for all purposes from public supplies in England and Wales was approximately 44 gallons per person per day in 1955 and 55 gallons per person per day in 1965. Consolidated information for 1975 is not yet available, but my hon. Friend may be interested to know that the corresponding figure for 1974 was 67 gallons per person per day.
§ Mr. Hardyasked the Secretary of State for the Environment what is his estimate of the number of weeks of normal water consumption which could be met from present reserves in each water authority area.
§ Mr. Denis HowellEstimates in this form are meaningless. Water supply situations are highly localised and depend on assumptions about rainfall, demand and operational flexibility. In particular, no reliable figures can be given for underground water because of the difficulty in estimating what proportion of the water in the ground can in fact be exploited.
§ Mr. Hardyasked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list those areas where present water supplies can be assumed to be abundant and those where shortages are, or seem likely to be, acute.
§ Mr. Denis HowellThe situation varies across the country and was described by my right hon. Friend the Minister for Planning and Local Government in his statement to the house on 2nd July, although the latest indications also suggest a deterioration in the situation in parts of Yorkshire.
§ Mr. Hardyasked the Secretary of State for the Environment what was the average cost of water per 1,000 gallons in England and Wales in each of the last 10 years and 199W the estimated consumption of water per person during those years.
§ Mr. Denis HowellThe average cost of water supplied by water authorities in England and Wales was 29p per thousand gallons in 1974–75 and 45p per thousand gallons in 1975–76. Corresponding information for earlier years is not readily available.
The average consumption of water taken for all purposes from public supplies in England and Wales in the period 1965 to 1974 was, in litres per person per day:
Year Consumption 1965 … … … … 251 1966 … … … … 256 1967 … … … … 261 1968 … … … … 269 1969 … … … … 281 1970 … … … … 288 1971 … … … … 290 1972 … … … … 294 1973 … … … … 302 1974 … … … … 304 Consolidated information for 1975 is not yet available.