Southern Water has confirmed that the hosepipe ban currently in place across the Isle of Wight and the rest of the region is to remain in force for the time being, as river levels are down around 25% on where they should be.
The Temporary Use Ban – more commonly known as hosepipe bans – was introduced on 5th August after weeks of little rain and record-breaking temperatures.
The ban has helped to reduce water usage in the area by around 5% compared to last year, saving roughly 11 million litres of water – that’s enough to fill over 4 Olympic swimming pools.
However, despite the reduction in demand and recent wet weather, the River Test’s levels are still low – around 25% down from where they should be at this time of year. With this in mind, the decision has been taken to keep the hosepipe ban in for longer.
It’s said that the region has had lower-than-average rainfall for the last 10 months.
A spokesperson for Southern Water has said:
” We fully appreciate the impact these restrictions have had on you and we want to reassure you of the things we’re doing to reduce demand on local rivers and limit water loss on our network.
“We’re investing £140 million to grow our leakage teams and introduce innovative technology to reduce the number of leaks we have in our network. Our leakage find-and-fix teams work 24/7 to identify and repair leaks as quickly as possible.
Article continues below this advertisement “Climate change and population growth means drought conditions and restrictions will become more common in our region. We’re investing around £350m over the next seven years to address these challenges and build water resilience in your area to keep taps and rivers flowing, today and in the future”.
Across Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, Southern Water has this year repaired over 2,980 leaks and has increased the leakage team capacity by 20%.
At last, someone has identified the elephant in the room, the P word!
Yes, this planet is already doomed despite anything the climate change warriors think they can achieve. Overpopulation is the single biggest thing that is killing the planet and still everyone continues to breed…
I still see people using hose’s, seen someone the other day off spencer road In Ryde……. I suppose they can afford a fine….
Or maybe they have an exemption?
You could always follow the Stasi protocol and report them if it makes you feel better.
I wash my car with a hose, because surprisingly it is more economical on water than using several buckets full to do the same job.
I pay for every drop, and I’m ‘careful’
I like to see you argue that in court lol
How can you get an exemption to water your garden ?
If you are disabled to the extent that you cannot carry a full watering can, you are exempt from the ban but only to water your plants, not to wash a car etc.
If the River Test flows from Basinstoke to Southampton Water, how can that effect the IOW?
My thoughts exactly. Seems we are yet again just getting lumped in with Southampton when they could easily lift the ban over here.
The Island does not produce enough water to fully satisfy demand so it is supplemented by water sourced from Hampshire.
Via a hose no doubt.
How big is an Olympic swimming pool?? How much lost with leaks??
What a complete farce this ban is.
It’s all about control.
I don’t own an Hosepipe, but too be honest if I did and I wanted to use one, I would,
Car washes are still open islandwide, cannot be that much of a water shortage.
Yes I guess southern water need to make up for all the leaks and gallons lost over the last few months and boost their profits , didn’t expect much else from them really .
Yeah why be accountable for wasted water through leaks when you can screw the customers,good ethos!