One of the downsides of rural life is poor water pressure.
On good days we can have a reasonable shower. But if the cows are in paddocks near the house the demand for water in troughs competes with that for the house so pressure drops and if someone’s filling the sprayer from the big hose in the yard there’s no water for a shower at all.
Because of that the new regulations which are going to dictate how powerful your shower can be isn’t going to affect me in practice but I still object on principle.
The new regulations are among amendments to the building code and cover hot water systems and will require the flow rate in showers is about half of what you get now.
Hundreds of thousands of people who start each day with a good drenching in their showers will be shocked to learn Labour wants to make such little luxuries illegal over time.
“There is no rhyme or reason to these regulations. One’s house size should not affect how much water you can use in your shower. This silly regulation particularly discriminates against families. In addition, people often shower for longer when water flows are weak, so savings end up being minimal.
“Households with solar, wetbacks or heat pumps may be using negligible electricity to heat their water. It is illogical to put restrictions on shower flows when no restrictions are put on bathing which uses significantly more energy. These regulations apply even if you’re not connected to the national grid or town water supply.
“National is all for efficiency and that is why we back improved home insulation, solar hot water, and heat pump technologies. These regulations are a misguided attempt at efficiency. What they really are is about using less. We don’t have to be so green that we can’t be clean.”
“People should be free to use as much water as they like when showering, provided they don’t expect others to pay for their profligacy. User-pays is a far better approach than nanny state.”
Water and energy efficiency are noble aims but once again Labour and the Greens are going for one-size fits all compulsion rather than allowing people to choose how they reduce their power and water consumption.
When a government can’t leave us alone in the privacy of our own bathrooms they’re way past their use by date.
No Minister is similarly unimpressed.
Homepaddock 
Oh the perfidy.
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As usual, the right wingers, led by Nick Smith, have got it wrong. This is a standard, not a ban, and there are several ways to meet the standard.
I posted on this over at g.blog earlier today.
Don’t believe the cow manure Nick Smith spouts, and, hey, give some thought to the advantages of going organic down on the farm.
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