Hosepipe ban update

Date published: 15 July 2010

North West water company United Utilities says that more rain is needed, despite heavy rain fall overnight.

A spokesperson for United Utilities said: "The rainfall in last 48 hours has been welcome, but we will need further sustained rainfall before we see reservoir levels recovering back towards normal, particularly in the Pennines.

“This welcome rain is starting to re-wet the ground that has completely dried out due to the very low rainfall in the past 7 months - more rain is needed to fully re-wet the ground and then we will then see the rainfall running off into reservoirs rather than just been soaked up by the parched the soils and moorland vegetation.”

The spokesperson concluded: “There has been more rainfall in Cumbria than elsewhere. This has raised lake levels and river flows sufficiently to enable pumping to re-start at our pumping stations at Lakes Windermere and Ullswater for the first time since Easter. This is helping stabilise reservoir levels at Thirlmere and Haweswater Reservoirs in the Lake District.

“We are monitoring the reservoir levels on a daily basis and we will lift the hosepipe ban as soon as levels recover back towards normal.”