Devon & Cornwall
South West Water
What to Watch For
A chlorine-resistant parasite found in agricultural catchment areas. Causes severe gastrointestinal illness and is not removed by standard chemical treatment.
Historic tin, copper, and arsenic mining left heavy metal contamination in soil and waterways. Arsenic, zinc, and cadmium leach into water sources from hundreds of abandoned mine sites across the region.
Fertilisers, pesticides, and animal waste wash into water sources from farmland. Nitrate contamination is a persistent problem in agricultural regions.
Rural properties at the end of long pipe networks receive water that has travelled great distances, picking up contaminants and losing residual disinfection along the way.
Untreated sewage is discharged into rivers and water sources during heavy rainfall. These overflow events introduce bacteria, viruses, and chemical pollutants upstream of treatment intake points.
Lead leaches into drinking water from old service pipes. Even low-level exposure is linked to developmental harm in children and cardiovascular issues in adults.
Elevated chlorine levels used to disinfect water can cause an unpleasant taste and odour. Long-term exposure to chlorine by-products has been linked to increased health risks.
Decades-old pipe networks corrode and degrade, introducing trace metals, sediment, and bacteria into the water supply between treatment and your tap.
Tiny plastic particles found in treated water supplies pass through standard filtration. Research into long-term health effects is ongoing, but early findings raise concern.
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances — "forever chemicals" — persist in water indefinitely. Linked to thyroid disease, immune suppression, and increased cancer risk. Standard treatment does not remove them.
When chlorine reacts with natural organic matter in water, it creates by-products including trihalomethanes. Long-term exposure is associated with increased health risks.
Natural and synthetic organic compounds from peat, agriculture, and industry can react with chlorine to form harmful disinfection by-products including trihalomethanes.
Trace amounts of medicines — from painkillers to hormones — have been detected in treated water supplies. Conventional treatment does not fully remove them.
Trace levels of agricultural pesticides persist in treated water. While individually below legal limits, the cumulative effect of multiple residues is poorly understood.
Overview
Devon and Cornwall enjoy naturally soft water from Dartmoor and Bodmin reservoirs. But rural pipe networks are long, chlorine dosing is heavy to compensate, and agricultural runoff from livestock farming introduces risks your filter jug ignores.
Water Hardness
South West water ranges from soft to moderate — 50–180 ppm. Easier on appliances than London, but the real concerns aren't about minerals. They're about what else is dissolved in your supply.
Common Contaminants
A major cryptosporidium outbreak in Brixham in 2024 affected 17,000 properties — caused by livestock manure entering supply. Historic tin, copper, and arsenic mining left heavy metal contamination across 450 km of waterways. Sewage pollution incidents soared 80% in 2024. Lead pipes, high chlorine dosing, PFAS, microplastics, and pesticide residues compound the risk.
What Pluvia Removes
The cryptosporidium that caused the Brixham outbreak, the arsenic and heavy metals from mining legacy, the agricultural pesticides, the PFAS, the high chlorine dosing and its by-products — Pluvia's RO membrane removes them all. UV-C sterilisation eliminates parasites that chlorine treatment proved it cannot handle.
Regional Notes
South West Water serves the most rural network in England. Some properties sit at the end of pipe runs exceeding 50 miles — plenty of distance for contaminants to accumulate between treatment and tap.
Check Your Extended Report
Want the full picture? South West Water publishes detailed water quality data for your exact postcode. Check their official report to see what's in your supply right now.
The information on this page is sourced from publicly available water quality reports published by South West Water and independent testing data. We do not guarantee its accuracy or that it reflects current conditions. Your actual water quality may be better or worse than described here. For the most up-to-date results, check your supplier's official report above.
Your area has Cryptosporidium risk & Mining legacy concerns — Pluvia removes them.
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