Discarded Bottled Water Packs Raise Concerns in Kent
South East Water has discarded dozens of shrink-wrapped packs of bottled water in a skip located in Morley Road, Kent. A resident of Tonbridge expressed strong disapproval upon discovering the skip filled with these multi-packs, suggesting that the water could have been distributed to those in need.
South East Water (SEW) clarified that the bottles were collected either from bottled water stations or returned by customers who no longer required them. Parris Durant, SEW's alternative water manager, explained the company's position regarding the disposal of these bottles.
"It was unable to use the water bottles as it could not guarantee they had been stored correctly or not tampered with."
The anonymous resident observed that while some bottles appeared to have been emptied onto the floor, the majority within the skip remained full.
"Surely this could have gone to the homeless or a charity," he said.
"My water bills will go up as they are throwing away money. Not only is it the water but the amount of plastic that is being disposed of."
Durant emphasized the importance of food safety compliance for all bottled water supplies.
"All our bottled water supplies must comply with food safety standards."
Price Increase and Regulatory Scrutiny
South East Water plans to increase prices by an average of 7% starting in April. This development follows an investigation initiated by the regulator Ofwat in January, which was prompted by repeated water supply failures affecting Kent and Sussex.
During the peak of these issues before Christmas, approximately 30,000 properties experienced water outages.
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