Thames Water tells customers to weed gardens to cut usage amid £14bn debt crisis

THAMES Water has told customers to weed their gardens to cut usage, despite leaking 585 million litres a day.

The company listed “spring tips” for Brits to reduce consumption.

It wrote: “We encourage customers to save water throughout the year. This is particularly important in spring and summer.

“Regularly weed your garden and mulch flower beds and hanging baskets. This will help water retention.”

Another tip urged customers to “take shorter showers” and “turn off your taps when brushing teeth”.

Experts have warned that — despite the wettest 18 months on record — Britain faces shortages and hosepipes bans this summer due to a lack of reservoirs and infrastructure problems.

Thames Water has amassed debts of £14.7billion and wanted to raise consumers’ bills by 40 per cent to fix pipes before regulator Ofwat rejected the plan.

In February, the company told regulators that it expects to leak 585 million litres of water a day, up from previous estimates.

Helen Marshall, of environmental charity CPRE Oxfordshire, told The Sun: “We all need to save water.

“This company appears tone deaf to needs of customers and our environment.”

Chair and Founder of River Action Charles Watson said: “It is a bit rich Thames Water asking bill payers to follow water saving tips when their broken business model has led to decades of chronic under-investment in their creaky infrastructure that leaks millions of litres of clean drinking water annually and leads to raw sewage discharges, for thousands of hours, in the rivers where they operate. How about fixing your leaky pipes first?”

A Thames Water spokesperson said: “We’re committed to helping customers use water wisely.”