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The Environment Agency has declared 11 out of 14 regions of England to be in drought after extending the status to the whole of South West England.
Whilst a drought had already been declared in Cornwall and Devon, the Wessex area comprising Bristol, Somerset, Dorset, south Gloucestershire and parts of Wiltshire had previously been categorised as experiencing “prolonged dry” conditions.
The Wessex, Bristol and South West water companies said there are currently no plans to impose hosepipe bans or further usage restrictions for customers in the affected areas.
A hosepipe ban for Cornwall and parts of Devon came into force on 23 August after the counties were declared to be in drought by the National Drought Group in early in the month.
The Environment Agency said after five consecutive months of below average rainfall across all geographic regions in England and above average temperatures, 11 of 14 geographic regions of England are now in drought. River flows, groundwater levels and reservoir stocks all decreased during July, which was the driest on record since 1935.
Chris Paul, the Environment Agency’s drought lead for Wessex, said: “Despite some heavy rain over the past 2 weeks, it has not been enough to refill our rivers and aquifers.
“River levels across our Wessex area are exceptionally low – many showing the lowest flows on record. This places incredible strain on local wildlife and this is why we are moving to drought status. We are prioritising our local operations to minimise impacts on the environment.”
A Wessex Water spokesperson said: “Our drinking water levels remain stable and we’ve seen a significant drop in demand for water compared to previous dry weather periods, so we have no plans to introduce a hosepipe ban.”
Similarly, a Bristol Water spokesperson said no restrictions are planned, despite a heavier reliance on reservoirs for supplies: “Thanks to our forward planning and the flexibility in our water network, we can balance our stored resources in a way that helps us manage supplies during drier conditions like those we’re currently experiencing. We also use artificial intelligence to manage our supplies in a way that cuts our energy use too, helping our environmental performance.”
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