British firms have secured vast tracts of land in Angola, Ethiopia, Nigeria and Tanzania to grow flowers and vegetables. A report in The Independent on 19 April warns that a potential global water crisis in coming decades could cause UK food prices to “skyrocket”- damaging the UK economy. Direct water consumption in the UK is around 145 litres per person per day, but this does not include the “virtual water” which is embodied in the food, clothes and goods we import. When virtual water is taken into account the average daily water footprint of people in the UK is 4,643 litres per person.
Bearing this in mind, does it make sense to build an ‘eco-town’ on agricultural land at Rackeath, straining existing water supplies?
5000 new homes with 2.4 inhabitants is 12, 000 consumers of water, within the proposed eco-town all using 145 litres per person per day
Eco-town daily requirement is therefore 12, 000 x 145 or 1.74 MILLION LITRES.
Eco-town annual requirement is therefore 1.74 million litres x 365, or 635.1 MILLION LITRES.
ON A SITE WITH AN EMPTY WATER TABLE.
Wouldn’t it be better to use that precious land to grow our food and not import food from countries where the population is often starving?
These figures really make a mockery of the supposed reduction from 145 to 80 litres per day which will be achieved IF households can reach Level 6. The real consumption plus consumption of scarce resources elsewhere really highlights the flaws in this concept. We will achieve it but only at someone elses expense.
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