Icy weather could lead to hosepipe ban
THE big freeze last night sparked fears that a water shortage could lead to hosepipe bans this spring.
Sub-zero temperatures have left reservoirs half empty. January saw just half the average rainfall for the month.
Ardingly reservoir in West Sussex is only 42 per cent full.
Underground aquifers, which supply more than three-quarters of the region’s drinking water, are also not refilling due to the cold.
Lee Dance, of South East Water, said: “The frozen ground makes it harder for the water to soak into the underground aquifers where much of our water is stored.
We are now having to face the prospect of further measures this spring and summer to protect public water supplies
“We are now having to face the prospect of further measures this spring and summer to protect public water supplies.
“We cannot rule out the possibility that we may have to ask for special powers to abstract more water than we usually do from rivers and also restrict customers’ non-essential use of sprinklers and hosepipes.”