Bristol Water has today (August 12) confirmed there is no change on the decision to avoid imposing a hosepipe ban as the UK faces another heatwave. The statement was reiterated to Bristol Live this morning, hours before the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs confirmed that parts of the South West are to be moved into drought status.
Parts of southern and central England, and the East of England, are also affected. Five water companies have now announced hosepipe bans, including Southern Water, which is affecting thousands of homes across Hampshire.
Due to Bristol Water's water sources - mostly reservoirs rather than the groundwater sources Southern Water takes 70 per cent of its water from - Bristol still does not need to impose a ban on hosepipes. Bristol Water take approximately 50 percent of their water from Chew Valley Lake, Blagdon Lake, Cheddar Reservoir and Barrow Gurney Reservoirs, with the remaining amount coming from the River Severn.
Read more: Why does Bristol Water not need to introduce a hosepipe ban?
Whilst reservoir water levels are lower than normal due to the prolonged dry spell we're experiencing, Bristol Water's "modelling and forecasts" do not indicate a needed ban at this time. Today (August 12) a Bristol Water spokesperson said: "Our water resources position is the same – based on our reservoir storage and current demand – so there is no need for a hosepipe ban at this time."
After the July heatwave, which saw Bristol's hottest day ever on record, Bristol Water issued a statement about their position on a hosepipe ban. At the time, they said: "Rainfall this year has been below average and as a result reservoir storage is lower than normal. However, our modelling and forecasts do not indicate the need to impose hosepipe bans or any other water supply restrictions during 2022.
“To ensure drought resilience, we will continue to enact our dry weather management plan. Over the coming months, we’ll prioritise and use other sources of available water and implement options to recover reservoir levels over the winter recharge period.
“We will continue to monitor the situation. However, with our current water resource outlook, we do not foresee any issues in supply to customers.”
The Met Office have issued a thunderstorm warning for the South West for as soon as Monday (August 15) - so the dry spell could be coming to an end. The Met Office has issued a ‘yellow warning’ for thunderstorms covering the region, including in Somerset, Bristol and Gloucestershire.
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