Millions at risk of hosepipe ban as another firm issues warning ahead of 29°C weather ...Middle East

Millions of water customers are at risk of a hosepipe ban following the UK’s third summer heatwave with the possibility of further hot weather in the coming week.

Yorkshire Water and South East Water have already announced hosepipe bans, one is currently in place and the other is set to come into effect later this week.

Southern Water, which has around 2.7 million customers across south-east England, said “restrictions may be needed in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight if river levels drop further”.

The provider, which serves parts of Kent, Sussex, Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, said it is monitoring the situation “very closely, especially in Hampshire” and taking it “day by day”.

This comes after the rainfall levels in the south-east dropped 50 per cent below average between April and June, according to Environment Agency (EA) data.

The amount of rainfall recorded in both east and central England was also 48 per cent below average from April to June. Meanwhile, the south-west of England’s rainfall levels dropped 13 per cent below average during that period.

Thames Water, the UK’s largest water supplier with 16 million customers, is continuing to monitor the impact of both the ongoing dry weather and the rise in demand for water. If there is not a significant improvement, Thames Water said it will have to implement a hosepipe ban, also known as a Temporary Usage Ban (TUB).

A Thames Water spokesperson said: “The ongoing dry weather and increased customer demand is impacting our water supplies across the Thames Valley and unless the situation changes significantly, we will need to put usage restrictions, including a hosepipe ban, in place to ensure taps keep running for customers’ essential use.”

So far, the water firm has stopped short of implementing a ban and instead simply asked customers to “take a break from using hosepipes in gardens and around the home if they can”. It has also encouraged customers to cut down the length of time they shower and switch off taps while brushing their teeth.

“Every drop of water we use comes from the environment and we’re asking our customers to help us by reducing their water use wherever possible,” a Thames Water spokesperson said.

“On Monday 30 June, in the Swindon and the Oxfordshire areas our customers’ daily demand for water reached that last seen during the 2022 drought.”

Although temperatures will be lower on Monday and Tuesday, the mercury will pick up again towards the end of the week, particularly in the south east.

Last month was England’s hottest June on record, according to the Met Office. The UK also experienced one of its warmest and driest springs on record in over 100 years.

Temperatures rose as high as 33.1°C in Bute Park, Cardiff, and Ross-on-Wye, Herefordshire, over the weekend after the third heatwave of the year engulfed the UK.

“The continued hot weather now means that the Environment Agency has placed the Thames Area into the Prolonged Dry Weather category, meaning there is heightened concern and risk of drought,” the Thames Water spokesperson said.

The north-west of England and Yorkshire have both declared droughts but multiple regions are at a high risk if conditions continue.

The EA has declared a state of prolonged dry weather that spans much of Oxfordshire, Berkshire and Surrey.

Yorkshire Water’s hosepipe ban came into effect on Friday and applies to all of its customers. No end date for the temporary measure has been announced yet.

Yorkshire Water said: “The restrictions would need to be in place until we receive significant rainfall, and our reservoir levels return to a situation much closer to normal.”

South East Water’s hosepipe ban begins on Friday 18 July in Kent and Sussex.

The company said: “If we don’t put a hosepipe ban in place now, there’s a really high risk of customers experiencing widespread issues such as low pressure or no water.”

Stuart Sampson, National Drought Manager at the EA, said: “This year has seen the driest spring since 1893 and the recent rain has not reduced the impact on the environment of the prolonged dry weather.

“We need to ensure we have enough water to last the summer, so we support water companies using hosepipe bans to reduce demand and conserve supplies until the drought breaks.”

EA data shows that below-average rainfall levels were recorded between April and June in all regions across England except the north-west.

Despite that, the north-west officially declared drought conditions in late May, along with Yorkshire. Reservoir levels in the north-west in June were also lower than all other regions across England, with a capacity of just 66 per cent.

United Utilities, which serves 7.3 million across the north-west, said it is “not considering any restrictions at this time”, adding that it has “seen our reservoir levels start to recover”.

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South West Water, which serves around 1.8 million customers in Devon and parts of Somerset and Dorset, also said it has no plans to impose a hosepipe ban this summer.

Wessex Water, which covers areas in Dorset, Somerset, Bristol, Wiltshire, Gloucestershire and Hampshire, said it too had no plans to restrict water use through a hosepipe ban.

A spokesperson for Wessex Water, which supplies water to 1.4 million customers, said: “The wet winter we experienced means groundwater and reservoir levels in our region, although below average, are currently not a cause for concern.

“During the current hot weather, we are continuing to review the situation and, regardless of the weather, always advise customers to use water responsibly as it keeps more in the environment and can save money for households on a meter. Saving water can also reduce energy bills.”

A Severn Trent spokesperson said it has not implemented a “hosepipe ban for over 30 years because we know just how important it is for our customers”, but added that it “can’t escape how hot and dry it is”, urging customers to reduce their water consumption.

The spokesperson said: “We’re finding and fixing more leaks than ever before, investing record amounts in new pipes, and upgrading and developing new treatment works, adding hundreds of millions of litres of drinking water into our network.

“So, whilst we want to reassure our customers that we’re doing everything we can to keep the water flowing, we can’t escape how hot and dry it is, and how little rainfall we’ve had this year.

“We experienced record levels of demand just last week and that’s why, as well as doing everything we can, we’re also asking our customers to be even more mindful of their water usage during this hot spell.”

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