07 July 2010
We have announced that we will impose a hosepipe ban following the driest start to a year since its records began. It is the first hosepipe ban in the North West for 14 years.
The ban will come into force on Friday July 9 at 6am.
The ban will apply to all our customers in the North West, with the exception of customers in Carlisle, Allerdale, Copeland and the north Eden Valley, where supplies are at reasonable levels.
John Sanders, United Utilities Water Regulation and Strategy Manager, says: "Despite some recent rainfall in the north of the region, reservoir levels are still significantly lower than we would expect at this time of year and are now at a point where we need to impose some temporary restrictions on our customers.
"It is not a decision we have taken lightly, but a hosepipe can use as much water in an hour as a family of four would use in one day. This ban will help us to safeguard essential water supplies to our customers if the drought continues. "
The ban will restrict the use of hosepipes or sprinklers for watering private gardens and washing private cars. You can still water your gardens with a watering can and wash your vehicles using a bucket and sponge. These methods typically use a fraction of the amount of water a hosepipe or sprinkler uses.
This move follows our earlier actions to maintain essential supplies, such as maximising water abstraction from ground water supplies and moving water around its regional integrated network of pipes.
We have also been running a radio and newspaper advertising campaign to encourage its seven million customers to use water wisely.
The recent rainfall in west Cumbria has eased the situation for customers who get their supply from Ennerdale Water. We are seeking to place an application for a drought permit at Ennerdale*(see note below) on hold because the amount of available water has increased sufficiently. However this situation is not mirrored in other parts of the region where reservoir levels remain low and we are applying for further drought permits for other sources in the region.
"We need to be very mindful that we share our water supply with the environment and we all need to do our bit to protect supplies for the benefit not just of our own communities but also our river wildlife," added John.
"We will need much more significant rainfall before the position starts to turn around. We are asking our customers to please observe the hosepipe ban and do what they can to save water in other areas of their daily lives. There are some simple things we can all do such as turning off the tap while brushing your teeth and running washing machines and dishwashers with a full load."
For more water saving tips and information please visit the links on the right.
You can find out whether you are in an area affected by the ban by entering your postcode into the search facility (below the banner) on our website homepage.
Further details
The exempt area can be approximately described as follows:
- Carlisle district
- Allerdale district (although Keswick, which is in Allerdale, will be affected by the ban)
- Copeland district
- The north-eastern corner of Eden district
These areas are exempt because they are on discrete supply network zones fed by local water sources which have not been so badly affected by lack of rainfall or, in the case of west Cumbria, have been replenished by recent heavy rains. Water stock levels in these zones are considered adequate. The zones are not connected to Thirlmere or Haweswater reservoirs or the integrated network which serves the rest of the region.
Water facts and figures
- A hosepipe uses as much water in an hour as a family of four would use in one day.
- A sprinkler left running overnight uses as much water as a family of four would use in one week.
Note referred to in text
* The drought permit application for Ennerdale Water in West Cumbria was made on June 25 to the Environment Agency. We have requested that it be put on hold due to the recovery in lake levels.
We are applying for further drought permits for other sources in the region, namely Rivington, Windermere and Longdendale.
Rivington and Longdendale are both networks of Pennine reservoirs and Windermere is in South Cumbria.
The drought permit application will be to seek the permission of the Environment Agency to allow us to release less water from the Rivington and Longdendale reservoirs back into rivers, and to take additional water out of Windermere.