Another hosepipe ban was announced today, and when South West Water implements the rule in just over a week, Cornwall and portions of Devon will be the next region of the United Kingdom to experience temporary restrictions.
Manx Water, Welsh Water, Southern Water, and South East Water are the four water companies that have already enacted bans;
Yorkshire Water has announced that restrictions will begin on August 26.
Thames Water is also preparing a ban in the upcoming weeks following the declaration of a drought for parts of England due to the driest summer in 50 years, which virtually eliminated rainfall in some areas throughout the summer.
Now, South West Water has announced that, starting at midnight on August 23, it will impose its own “temporary use ban” restrictions. According to company executives, this will be the company’s first ban in more than 25 years.
The population of Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly is thought to be around 575,000, but during the height of summer, due to the large number of vacationing families who will also be impacted by the ban, it can reach up to 850,000.
This indicates that it will probably affect about one million people in addition to the small portion of Devon covered by the restriction.
The Met Office has issued four days of thunderstorm warnings running from yesterday until Wednesday amid forecasts of heavy rain – but experts have said England needs ‘weeks of rain’ to reverse the drought conditions.
A South West Water spokesman said today: ‘It’s the first time in 26 years but we’ve been left with no other choice.
We need to have a hosepipe ban now to protect our precious water.’
‘We’ve done our best to avoid this ban. We’ve increased the amount of water we can store, doubling it since the last drought in 1976.
‘We’ve opened reservoirs, installed a new borehole, and improved the way we can move water across the region to help keep everyone’s taps running.’
South West Water said it was now fixing about 2,000 leaks a month, with a third happening on customer supply pipes, which were being repaired for free.
Last Friday, the very dry conditions prompted the National Drought Group to move parts of the South West, parts of southern and central England, and the East of England into official drought status.
The change could lead to more measures such as hosepipe bans, however the Environment Agency has reassured the public that essential water supplies are safe.
The most recent Environment Agency data showed rainfall totals for August have ranged from 12 per cent of the long-term average in north east England to 0 per cent in south east and south west England.
In the meantime, data on river flow showed that nearly 90% of measurement sites had readings that were below average, with 29% being classified as “exceptionally low.”
The agricultural sector has also been negatively impacted by the heat and dryness.
According to the National Farmers Union, crops such as sugar beet and maize are showing signs of stress from a lack of rain, while crops relying on irrigation, such as field vegetables and potatoes, are also facing problems.
John Curtin, a director at the Environment Agency, said above average rainfall must last a period of several months to alleviate the drought problems facing parts of the country.
Last Friday, he said, in an interview with BBC Radio 4’s World At One, “Mainly it is a signal that this is not a normal summer now, that water will be an issue and probably will be an issue for months ahead, depending how the winter goes.”
It all depends on the weather, I’m afraid, Mr. Curtin continued.
There will likely be Monday and Tuesday’s worth of heavy showers.
‘But please, don’t think that will end the drought because we’re talking about that we’ve lost a week’s worth of rain and it’ll take weeks of rain, we’ll probably need average or slightly above average rainfall this autumn into this winter for us to not be in a drought next year,’ the statement continued.
It will be the ninth day in a row that somewhere in the UK will experience temperatures of at least 86F (30C), and the heatwave will continue for most of England today with highs of up to 90F (32C) in the South East.
But starting tomorrow, when the South East is expected to reach a high of 77F (25C), the temperature will start to drop dramatically. By Wednesday, temperatures will feel significantly cooler due to highs of only 72F (22C).
Scotland has been under thunderstorm warnings since 9 a.m. yesterday and they will stay in effect through today.
There is a chance of up to 1.2 inches (30 millimetres) of rain in the next hour and 2 inches (50 millimetres) of rain in the next three to six hours.
At 10 a.m. this morning, a warning for the entirety of England and Wales goes into effect, citing the possibility of “torrential downpours for some spots” that could result in traffic congestion, train delays, flooding, and power outages.
This warning, which includes a “small chance of fast flowing or deep floodwater,” is in effect through tomorrow night, though the Met Office predicted that some areas in the affected area will remain dry while others will experience torrential rain.
Then, from Wednesday morning until the end of the day, a different warning that only applies to the South of England is in effect, stating that up to 1.2 inches (30 millimetres) of rain could fall in an hour and 2.4 inches (60 millimetres) in “less than three hours.”