Firefighters in Wales using treated sewage water to combat blazes in UK first
Firefighters in one part of the UK are trialling the use of treated sewage water to combat blazes.
Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service is trialling the use of the water, which has been treated by ultraviolet.
The effluent water is used at fire incidents as an alternative to other water sources, such as drinking water.
The average modern fire appliance has a water capacity of 1,800 litres.
Some communities can occasionally be impacted by issues such as low water pressure and dirty water due to the large amount of water required to respond to incidents.
Currently, water has to be shuttled from various locations if water supply is low at the site of an emergency.
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The fire service said some of these locations can be “up to an hour” away which might “delay” response times.
The hope is the trial – a partnership between the fire service, Welsh Water and Natural Resources Wales – will help to reduce that strain.
Welsh Water is the sixth largest of the 10 regulated water and sewage companies in England and Wales.
While Natural Resources Wales is a Welsh government-sponsored body tasked with the maintenance of Wales’s natural resources.
The Mid and West Wales service said reducing reliance on clean water was “increasingly important” as it aimed to achieve its ambition of net zero carbon emissions by 2030.
A spokesperson for Welsh Water said it was “fully supportive” of the trial.
They added: “By substituting this volume of water which otherwise would have been taken from the potable water supply it will help in the preservation of our supplies for customers especially in the face of increasing climate change impact on our natural resources.”
A spokesperson for Natural Resources Wales added its regulatory approval would deliver the “sustainable management of natural resources”.