Environment Agency declares UK drought as millions hit with hosepipe bans

A drought has been declared in the UK as millions of Brits face hosepipe bans.

The Environment Agency (EA) - which aims to help protect the UK environment - has warned England faces widespread drought conditions by September.

The East and West Midlands have become the latest areas of England to fall into drought as the country struggles with the driest start to the year since 1976.

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The declaration of drought status for the East and West Midlands means the region joins Yorkshire, Cumbria and Lancashire, and Greater Manchester, Merseyside and Cheshire, which are already in drought.

As it stands, there are four UK regions considered drought zones, and there could be an additional four within a matter of months, it says. The National Drought Group is set to meet later today to discuss the worsening situation.

Three water companies have already rolled out hosepipe bans as water supplies dwindle following one of the driest springs on record.

The EA offered a "reasonable worst-case scenario", which would see drought spreading further south through the UK if the situation does not improve.

If England gets only 80 per cent of its usual rainfall alongside the scorching temperatures we've been experiencing, the East and West Midlands, Thames Wessex, Solent and South Downs, East Anglia, Lincolnshire and Northamptonshire will also be considered drought zones.

Water resources deputy director for the Environment Agency, Richard Thompson, said: “We certainly expect more regions to enter drought status.

“We’ll be announcing that at the National Drought group tomorrow. That could extend further, depending under a reasonable worst case scenario.

“Obviously, if we were to get average rainfall or above, it might slow down the rate in which new parts of the country enter official drought status, but we do expect more.”

“We continue to respond to the current situation, but also to prepare for all eventualities,” he said.

It has left around seven million Brits facing a potential hosepipe ban, with South East Water already introducing bans in Kent and Sussex.

South East Water will enforce its hosepipe ban on July 18, Yorkshire Water imposed its rules from yesterday (July 11). Both firms warned that reservoirs had struggled amidst the driest spring in over a century, while demand for water has only surged.

Yorkshire Water explained: "While we’re out 24/7 fixing leaks and looking after your water, we’re asking customers to put down their hosepipes, so we can let our reservoirs recover. Our reservoir levels haven’t actually increased since the last week of January!

"Normally our groundwater sources and reservoirs get topped up over spring when the weather is changeable but this year we’ve had the driest spring on record and Yorkshire is officially in drought. The hosepipe restrictions allow us to apply for drought permits, so we can change how we’re operating and further protect water supplies."

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