Kit Knightly – The Unz Review Oct 26, 2024

A look through the headlines suggests that – along with our money, food, communication and transport – our water supply is in line to be part of the “Great Reset” remodel of society.

This is hardly surprising, but maybe we don’t talk about it as much as we should.

For a few years now a “water crisis” has been a C list headline doing the rounds in local papers and near-empty parliamentary discussions – but now suddenly it’s hitting front pages proper.

In March scary reports were published alleging that waterbourne diseases had increased by 60% in the last decade.

Earlier this year the UK’s water companies requested OfWat – the government regulator – increase the price of water.

Then, earlier this week, it was announced the price would be even higher than expected, with some areas seeing a prices raised by 84% over the next six years, prompting predictable outrage.

Even as prices increase, the companies are still folding. Thames Water – the largest water company in the country – is over £15 billion in debt and is desperately seeking emergency loans.

We’re also being told that our infrastructure is dated and “creaking”. Just hours ago the BBC published an “in-depth read” on the UK’s water infrastructure:

The water industry is in crisis. Can it be fixed?

Amusingly enough, this article argues that the country essentially has too much water, and that increased rainfall causes flooding which overwhelms water treatment plants and causes sewage to leak into fresh water.

So  – more rain = a water crisis. Less rain = a water crisis.

It’s apparently very difficult getting the amount of water right for them

Top tier MSM logic.

Government ministers are actually claiming the UK could face a drinking water shortage in the near future.

We might have to import water from overseas in giant tankers!

Anyway, the “problem” has been clearly stated, so we’re into the “reaction” phase.

Two days ago the government announced a brand new “Government Independent Water Commission”, apparently the largest review of the water sector since it was privatised in the late eighties.

A sidebar historical note on the UK’s water system. It was “privatized” in 1989 by Thatcher’s government, but it has never really subject to true Capitalist market forces. Rather the local water authorities were sold and transformed into regional for-profit water companies.

Customers have no choice of water supplier, and are forced to pay local water companies whatever the government “regulator” says the price should be.

Essentially it’s a system of regional monopolies. It’s a corrupt and unfair and takes advantage of ordinary people…but it’s been that way for thirty-five years.

Call me cynical but I find it hard to imagine this “review” is going to be about making it less corrupt or more fair .

So what is it about?

Well, there’s a lot of talk about renationalization. Labour ruled it out back in September, but the press are largely in favour (even The New York Times), so maybe Starmer will be “pressured” into “changing his mind”.

What this “renationalization” might look like, and exactly how much of our tax revenue will be spent on it, is hard to imagine at this point.

We’ll have to wait for the results of the “review” to see what direction the narrative goes. But it’s largely immaterial.

Whether the UK’s water is private, public or the good old private-public partnership, the end goal seems to be “reducing demand”. At least, according to a government report from earlier this year.

Back in March, the previous administration published a report titled “A summary of England’s revised draft regional and water resources management plans”, which details the “problem”:

our climate is changing, our population is growing, and as a nation we want an improved environment along with a thriving economy, enabled by resilient water supplies. Action is required now to meet these objectives
[…]
Without action, the revised draft plans indicate that by 2050 the nation’s public water supply will face a shortfall of over 4,800 Ml/d. This is the collective deficit faced across all water companies in England.

…before suggesting “solutions” [emphasis added]:

Water companies have long been encouraged to look at ways of reducing demand, while looking for new sources of water. The latest rounds of revised draft plans reflect this twin-track approach, with almost two thirds of the water needed in 2050 coming from reductions in demand. Specifically, 48% of water will come from using water more efficiently and metering.

So what exactly do they mean by “reducing demand”?

Water is not a luxury and it’s not something you can replace. Only water can be water and people need what they need. No, “reducing demand” is civil servant talk for “reducing use”.

People will still demand water, they just won’t be able to get it.

…that’s where the “metering” comes in. Smart metering, to be specific.

You’re probably more familiar with smart meters when it comes to energy supplies, but “Smart” water meters are a thing too, and they might just be the answer to our “crisis”.

Appendix A to the water report above details the government targets as part of their “demand management programmes”:

As set out in the main report, the revised draft plans have proposed smart metering programmes as part of wider demand management programmes. This includes both installing smart meters in homes that are not metered, new homes and upgrading existing basic meters to smart meters in metered households.

They aim to increase metering in general and smart metering specifically until at least 75% of homes have Smart water meters:

Most companies are planning a rollout out of smart meters, with current revised draft plans achieving around 48% smart metering of households by 2030, 73% by 2040 and 76% by 2050.

So, what’s so great about smart meters?

Well, the question should be “what’s not so great about smart meters?”, and the answer would be “nothing”.

Smart meters are more accurate than old fashioned water meters, they’re more reliable, they report readings digitally so you don’t have to send people to manually read them, they “reduce carbon emissions” (apparently), they automatically detect leaks…

…oh, ummm…and they can be shut off remotely.

You know, incase of non-payment of bills or if you happen to overuse your climate-friendly net zero fresh water allowance.

Yeah – so there’s that…

Just supposition on my part of course, and under current UK law it’s actually legally difficult to shut off someone’s water, but laws can be changed. Or just ignored – if you happen to be a government-backed water monopoly with  a bottomless budget for dealing with legal challenges.

Nobody has used the word “rationing” yet (at least not about water), but it’s hard not to hear it on the wind when remote-shut off smart meters are being billed as a solution to “increased demand” and we’re living under the cloud (so to speak) of fake “climate change”.

And, of course, it won’t be isolated to the UK. It never is. Globally the Smart water meter market is predicted to grow from just over a billion dollars in 2018, to $3.8 billion last year to over $7 billion by 2031 on the back of initiatives across the EU and North America.

The water aspect of The Great Reset is still in its early stages, but it’s hard to see it going anywhere good.

Another spoke in  the wheel. Another means to an end. A little more writing on the wall.

How long do we just sit here and watch it happen?

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