Changing consumer behaviour around using appliances will save more water than additional regulations, Paul Hide, chief executive of the Association of Manufacturers of Domestic Appliances (AMDEA) has said.
The head of the UK trade body for appliance manufacturers pointed to continual technological improvements over the past decade as testament to the manufacturing community’s commitment to energy and water efficiency.
Speaking on Affinity’s water efficiency podcast, Hide said: “Water usage from appliances is becoming just as important as the use of energy. It’s still a finite and critical resource that we all have to use carefully.”
On behalf of the sector Water UK is calling on the government to use the upcoming Environment Bill to make labelling mandatory for all household goods that use water.
Hide said AMDEA would support changes to regulation where it has been carefully considered to bring benefits without raising the price of appliances beyond consumers’ budgets.
However, changes to household behaviour would save more water and energy than efficient new products alone, he insisted.
“It’s not about changing the product specifications,” Hide said. “It’s about changing our behaviour around what we buy and how people use it.”
AMDEA carried out a survey of householders’ priorities when choosing a new appliance, which found two-thirds put price at the top of their list. However, there was “an improving focus on environmental issues” with 37 per cent citing that as a significant factor when buying. Hide added there is “clearly a long way to go” before all consumers are thinking about the relative environmental impact when buying new products.
He said all manufacturers are “constantly” trying to make water-using appliances both more water and energy efficient.
He added: “It isn’t just about how much water a machine uses but also about how we use machines, are people buying the right size for their needs, are people filling the dishwasher or washing machine to their capacity and applying the eco settings when using them.
Since the start of March manufacturers have been required to include revised energy efficiency labels. For washing machines this includes how much water in litres is used in a cycle.
The AMDEA supported the Europe-wide changes to broaden the scope of appliance efficiency labels and give an indication of water consumption.
“We think it’s a very important step forward in useful information so people buying appliances can consider the most efficient for both water and electricity. Our members support that.”
As part of its #WhyNotWater campaign, Affinity Water called for water efficiency labels to be mandated for all household appliances that use water to make it simpler for shoppers to see at the point of sale how much water was used.
Water efficiency targets are anticipated to be set when Defra publishes its long-awaited consultation on per capita consumption this spring.