Site water restrictions – update.

A Place To Grow Your Own

There’s apparently an underground leak in the supply on PPA site, which is losing about ten cubic metres of water per day, and the meter indicates that it seems to be getting worse. A cubic metre costs about two pounds, so this would equate to over £7,000 per year, if the water were left on all day. (That’s well over PPAA’s annual grant from the Council.)

The Council proposed that the water could be turned off completely, full time (at the off-site valve), until the leak were fixed, but volunteers offered to turn it on for just a few hours each day, and the Council commended this. If it’s only on for six hours a day, then the cost of the wasted water is reduced to “only” about £1,750 per year.

Two Committee volunteers have so far offered to attend site twice a day – every day – to attend to this. There’s also a plot holder who’s very kindly helped out when they’ve not been able, e.g. because they weren’t even in Cardiff, and PPAA Committee are very grateful to him. The personal and family lives of these volunteers mean that the water will often be turned on around 0900-1000 and off at about 1430-1530, though this may vary quite a bit. We appreciate that those in full time work would perhaps prefer the water to be on at a later time, but there just aren’t the people on hand at these times to do that as it stands.

We’d emphasise the importance of no water being wasted. The Tenancy Agreement gives an implied right to use it for watering crops, but for no other purpose. This means that e.g. any ponds shouldn’t be refilled unnecessarily. (In principle they shouldn’t be refilled at all, but we understand that this could result in the preventable loss of quite a range of wildlife, now that it’s established).

The Council’s Allotments Officer’s also pointed out, quite unequivocally, that no person on Cardiff allotments has any dispensation or understanding from or with the Council to attach hose pipes and pumps or similar equipment to the water troughs for the drawing of water from them.

It’s particularly the case during the drought conditions of late, that while these restrictions remain, we all owe it to ourselves to be sparing and considerate in the use of such water as might be in the troughs.

The Council have a single team working on these leaks – there are those on other sites too – and they’re doing so in order of seriousness. However, we’ve no information on how long our own wait might be. The leak was first noted at the end of last summer, and we’ve been waiting since then already.

It’s a fact of life, that unfortunate things happen, and when they do, they’re often going to have impacts that we might not like.

Thanks to all, for everyone’s patience and understanding.

PPA Website Team

10 thoughts on “Site water restrictions – update.”

  1. The staff responsible for the Riverside Community Garden will be happy to turn the water on and off between 10am and 2pm on Wednesdays and Fridays. We can also do this on Saturday 3rd May.
    Thanks , Adrian

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    1. (This is an updated reply.)

      Thank you very much Adrian.

      However, the stopcock is on a private plot. Its tenant understands the need for PPAA Committee to enter on from time-to-time, but we wouldn’t want to disturb them unnecessarily with people whom they don’t know going on. The Council only authorise PPAA Committee to control the water supply, although they’ve delegated to an acquaintance of the said plot holder before now.

      The volunteers use their judgement, taking into consideration the weather, number of people on site, and so on, in deciding how long to leave on the water each day (subject to their own circumstances), and so the 1000-1400 period that you mention could also be inappropriate on some days.

      As it stands then, the job will continue to be done by PPAA Committee, but many thanks once again for your kind offer.

      PPAA volunteers.

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    1. Hi Martin,

      That’s done, I hope that you find it better now.

      I’ve generally found it rather indistinct too, so I’ll see if this can be the default for everything that we write from now on.

      Update: you should now find that the whole site is as you’ve requested. Hope that you like it?

      Cheers,

      Admin

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  3. I have noticed that some of the water troughs have tadpoles in them. I can’t imagine how they got in but please try to preserve them by putting planks in the troughs so that the new frogs can climb out in due course and eat our slugs!

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    1. I expect that the frogs got in to spawn by means of the planks that some people put in the troughs, Jane?

      If anyone has a net, then it might be better to fish them out and put them in a pond, otherwise they’ll likely just end up being tipped from watering cans onto growing vegetables.

      They can also do a lot of good there by eating the myriad midge larvae, which breed so abundantly in such hospitable places.

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  4. So people who have extremely busy lives and are only able to visit the plot garden hobbies after 4 pm this year only be able to grow dust 🤔 if rain 🌧 are in lack of abundance… I am looking forward to starting listening 🎶 motivation tapes on to write ✍️ a book 📖 on how to be more motivated without success 🙌 ✅️
    Something to think about!

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    1. Hi Monica,

      The volunteers who turn on and off the water have very seldom found a single empty trough in the mornings, so what you say just isn’t the case so far, fortunately.

      We could leave the water on full time, and then the Council would perhaps revisit their proposal that the site could be deprived of water completely until the leak were fixed, and we just don’t know when that would be. They have a logger, a kind of Smart Meter in the supply, so can see when it’s on or off.

      Nearly everyone is managing the position well, and we hope that it doesn’t have to be for too long.

      Liked by 1 person

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