Grab a 'Big Butt' is the message from Jersey Water

A cheeky new campaign is showing love for big butts, asking households to grab one and save water.

Jersey Water's 'Big Butt' message hopes to encourage us to preserve low water stocks, with reservoir levels well below the 10 year average.

The utility company is promoting the year round use of water butts, which help households collect rainwater to use for watering their gardens and houseplants, topping up pools and ponds, and washing vehicles, rather than using drinking water from the mains.

Mark Bowden, Head of Water Resilience and Emergency Planning at Jersey Water, says there has been keen interest from customers about different ways to save water, particularly over the winter months.

"If you have a garden, investing in a water butt is one of the simplest and most effective ways to collect rainwater to use during drier months, and it will also help reduce your water bill.

"Plus, rainwater is much better for your plants than tap water! If we can get people preparing now for next spring and summer, it should make a real difference, especially as we will need above-average rainfall over the winter to replenish our reservoir stocks."

The 'Big Butt' initiative aims to get people thinking differently about their water use and making small changes to help our reservoirs recover from our increasingly drier months.

Water levels are still below average for the time of year, and there is uncertainty over winter rainfall to replenish supplies for next year.

JFTU, Ransoms, Le Quesne’s and St Peter’s Garden Centres are offering islanders a 10% discount on water butts until 6 December to help with the cost of purchase.

People can also use the free GetWaterFit app, available on the Jersey Water website, to understand where they use the most water at home and get personalised tips to cut back.

Jersey Water has also given islanders some simple tips for saving water:

• Turn off the tap while brushing teeth — it saves up to 6 litres every minute;
• Keep showers short — cutting from 7 minutes to 4, saves around 24 litres;
• Run full loads — dishwashers and washing machines use the same amount of water regardless of how full they are;
• Fix leaks quickly — a dripping tap can waste over 200 litres a day;
• Keep a jug of cool water in the fridge instead of running the tap for cold drinks;
• Hold off on the car wash — or use a bucket and sponge instead of a hose;
• Islanders can also use the free GetWaterFit app, available on Jersey Water’s website, to understand where they use the most water at home and receive personalised tips to cut back.