Dry weather forces Southern to prepare for drought permit

Southern Water is preparing to request a drought permit in Hampshire as changes to its abstraction licences mean reliance on permits is likely to recur for many years.

The company is monitoring river flow rates and preparing to apply for the permit at the end of August after continued dry weather left flow levels low in the River Test.

Abstraction licences from two chalk streams in Hampshire – the Test and Itchen – were amended last year by the Environment Agency to protect the biodiversity of these rivers. Prior to the change Southern took around half the required water for Southampton from the Test.

Nigel Hepworth, water resources policy manager at Southern, explained the company has a mutual agreement with the EA for dependency on drought permits and orders until alternative supplies can be brought on-line.

“Enhanced reliance on drought permits is not a great position to be in. It would be better to have new supplies and resources in place,” Hepworth said but added there is no “quick fix” to the problem.

Interim improvements to reduce dependency include increasing the bulk supply agreement with neighbouring Portsmouth. Water recycling is also being investigated.

As a longer term solution the company is exploring options for a desalination plant and Portsmouth is planning to construct a reservoir at Havant Thicket to supply to Southern.

The permit could come into force late September to mid-October by which time the dry weather is likely to have abated. Hepworth said sustained rainfall would be required to avoid the need for the permit but stressed that a hosepipe ban is unlikely.

“If a water company puts hose pipe bans in place to early or too frequently it imposes a restriction on customers which is a breach of our promise of level of service,” Hepworth said.

The extended warm weather has put pressure on supplies in the region as demand has remained higher than normal but water resource levels are in a “reasonably good position”.

Elsewhere in the region one of Southern’s reservoirs is out of service and not anticipated to return to normal capacity before the autumn.

Last year Southern applied for a permit in late July as river flows had been low earlier in the summer however sustained rainfall in August meant it was not required.

The company is separately reviewing the sustainability of its current abstraction licences, which could lead to further reductions should they be appropriate to protect the ecosystems of the chalk streams.