Small island: big success?

Flora writes*

78 square kilometres. 64,000 inhabitants. One water utility.

The water world is rife with allocation conflicts, corruption, and pollution problems. Yet off the coast of France, Guernsey Water supplies residents with reliable, clean, drinking water, at little environmental cost. How has it managed to do so?

There are three key factors which contribute to success.

First, unlike water utilities elsewhere, Guernsey Water (GW) does not have to calculate complicated allocation costs: the island benefits significantly from virtual water given its modest industrial and agricultural sectors. Indeed, only 141 megalitres were directed towards horticulture and agriculture in 2020, and only 815 megalitres were used on a commercial/public scale. That’s 3% and 17% respectively. The remaining water consumption is domestic (metered and unmetered), with only 13% estimated network loss. These figures reflect a utility which is not battling water demands from various sectors – a water utility that can prioritise clean and safe provision to households.

Second, GW has established an open relationship with those managing the island’s biodiversity. La Société Guernesiaise is the 2nd largest landowner on island, the non-governmental organisation oversees the management of key nature reserves on island. Land Manager, Jamie Hooper, notes that “they’ve always been sympathetic, we’ve never had a ‘no’”. (Telephone Interview, 14/11/23). By this, he’s referring to the infrastructure amendments GW implemented to allow eels to bypass the waste-water pipelines out to the open ocean; and the amenability of GW to retain some water in the island’s streams when La Société fears too much is being abstracted. The topographical nature of the island also offers a natural advantage, with a range of 106.47m to -39.269m around sea-level: water runoff can be collected at the mouth of the stream, meaning water along douits is not over-harvested.

Akin to open dialogues with environmental conservationists, GW undertook a Customer Prioritisation survey in 2021, which elicited 7 key priorities that the utility aims to prioritise to ensure consumer concerns are met, including: maintenance of water’s taste; efficient and cost effective service operations; protecting the environment from pollution; and minimising environmental impact with regard to waste, energy, and carbon. Weighed against their own agenda, this conversation reassures consumers and the utility alike that money is being spent in a transparent way: “it’s their money”, says Managing Director, Steven Langlois. (Telephone Interview, 20/11/23)

Though times are changing. Climate change means the salinity of the island’s brackish ecosystems are fluctuating at an unsteady rate. November 2023 saw the island collect 38 million litres of water in 1 week, but in November 2022 GW prepared for a state of drought as water storage levels were classed officially as ‘low’. The island’s growing population brings growing demand. Can GW sustain its services for the price islanders are paying? Can necessary infrastructure be implemented to safeguard against erratic weather patterns? Or will the island’s utility soon be in ‘deep water’ so to speak…

Bottom Line: Guernsey has natural economic and geographical advantages which facilitates equitable water allocation and collection. The small community also allows open dialogues with different stakeholders. But changing population dynamics and climate change are putting pressure on the utility – will it continue to deliver?

* Please help my Water Scarcity students by commenting on unclear analysis, alternative perspectives, better data sources, or maybe just saying something nice 🙂