Anglian Water to lift hosepipe ban in Norfolk, Waveney and the Fens

The current hosepipe ban in place for Anglian Water customers in our region will be lifted tomorrow.

The ban for Norfolk, Waveney and the Fens was introduced at the start of April after the driest 18-month period in more than a century had left reserves desperately low.

But the restriction was followed by record rainfall across the UK for that month, and more rain in May and so far in June.

Now sources have revealed the hosepipe ban will be lifted, due to:

- The amount of rain that has fallen;

- Good practice from Anglian Water customers;

- Anglian Water being able to retain more water.

The declaration of a hosepipe ban for Anglian Water customers was announced on Thursday, April 5, and coincided with weather in the east of England taking a decidedly wet turn.

While the irony of the situation was not lost on people who could not wash their cars or water their garden using a hose, an underlying drought was still being battled by water companies.

The drought status for 19 counties was lifted by the Environment Agency on Friday, May 11, following the wettest April on record.

This saw south-west England, the Midlands and parts of Yorkshire lifted out of drought but in East Anglia, where ground water makes up 50pc of our supplies, the shortage remained a major concern.

Despite the damp conditions dragging on, only a fraction of that rainfall had trickled into our aquifers – the rocks beneath our feet where half of the region’s drinking water is stored.

That is nowhere near enough to overcome the effects of the preceding 18 months, the driest for a century, and the two extremely dry winters when ground water is usually replenished.

The prospect of another dry winter means Anglian Water will need its customers to remain conscious of not wasting water.

Last month its water saving campaign Drop 20 was launched, calling on customers to reduce their daily usage from 145 litres – the current regional average – to 125 litres.

The company is offering tips and kits to help people use around two buckets less water each day and encouraging people to have a water meter fitted, which can save households around £100 a year.

Customers can apply for a water saving kit from www.anglianwater.co.uk, as well as visiting The Potting Shed, a partnership with the Royal Horticultural Society – for tips and kits for the garden.