IT IS a dramatic £83m plan to change our views on water use forever – and save our rivers from drying up.

Starting on Wednesday, Southern Water will install 140,000 free water meters in every home in southern Hampshire between now and 2014.

They cannot be refused by householders and there will be financial winners and losers.

And while residents await their new meters, there will be renewed concern about the huge quantities of water already being lost every day through the company’s own leaking pipes.

In this four-page special report, we investigate how metering will affect YOU – and ask Southern Water chiefs the big questions.

Will this be fair for poorer families?

Would metering be necessary if the company fixed their own pipes?

And exactly how much extra will some people have to pay?

Southern Water insists action is vital because the south of England is one of the driest areas in the UK.

They say the situation is so bad that the Government has classed it an Area of Serious Water Stress.

This is because of an increase in the population and the impact of climate change, with warmer and drier years, according to water bosses.

They rely on winter rainfall to refill the aquifers underground from where they take more than two-thirds of our water.

Southern Water believes that meters will make a real difference, as they say people who have them tend to use ten per cent less water. They say it is crucial to take action now for a number of reasons.

Climate change is likely to see temperatures rise between 2C and 3.5C by 2080, with rainfall in the south-east of England dropping by up to half, say the utility chiefs. This would mean droughts like we saw in 2004–2006 are likely to be more common.

Daily Echo: Where meters will be installed

And – they add – as the population of the south-east continues to rise, the amount of water needed will increase even further, placing more pressure on local rivers and the already stressed natural environment.

Southern Water will install 500,000 meters across their region by 2015 – a vast region incorporating Kent, Sussex, Hampshire and the Isle of Wight.

The £83m metering programme across this whole area will be funded by their customers through bills, already approved by industry regulator Ofwat, over the next five years.