According to the Environment Agency, serious water shortages could be in the future for Wales and much of England next year unless there is a significant amount of rainfall during the winter months.
The recent rain has done little to replenish water levels in the reservoirs and rivers that are already rather low due to the UK recently having experienced one of the driest spells recorded in England and Wales since 1921. The worst hit region has been in the South East, where rainfall has been around 30% of the average annual rainfall and some of the rivers are only at 20% of the normal flow or his time of the year.
According to the Environment Agency, unless there is around 120% of the average annual rainfall between now and next April, the situation will not improve.
According to Barbara Young, the Agency’s chief executive, “We should not become complacent just because we have had heavy rainfall in the last few days. England and Wales has had an exceptionally dry summer and autumn and while water supplies have provided us throughout this period and supplies are secure for the coming winter, unless we receive higher than average rainfall between now and March we could be faced with water restrictions and serious water shortages in 2004.”
Six UK water companies have already instituted drought management plans in an effort to ensure that water supplies to customers remain unaffected.
Thames Water was recently awarded two drought permits by the Environment Agency, permitting it to increase abstraction from a groundwater source and the River Thames for the next four months. United Utilities and South East Water have applications for permits pending and the Environment Agency expects Severn Trent, Southern Water, and Welsh Water to also apply for permits.
In the meantime, it is important that everyone save as much water as possible by using the minimum amount of water for boiling kettles and in saucepans for vegetable cooking, washing vegetables in a bowl and not under a running tap, fixing leaking taps by replacing the washers, replacing leaking hoses and pipes, and selecting half-load programmes on washing machines and dishwashers where possible.
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