Hosepipe ban to end 'within weeks' - water firm

A hosepipe ban came into effect in July, affecting more than five million people in Yorkshire

A hosepipe ban affecting more than five million people is expected to be ended "in the next few weeks" following heavy rainfall, Yorkshire Water has said.

The firm said it was taking steps to remove its drought permits, which allow it to reduce the amount of water released from reservoirs into rivers, following a tenth week of increases in its reservoir levels.

A Yorkshire Water spokesperson said the removal of the permits would allow the lifting of hosepipe restrictions earlier than initially thought, although they remained in place for the time being.

The hosepipe ban was declared in July following the driest and warmest spring on record.

The firm's spokesperson said reservoir levels were recovering well, now standing at 84.6% full, up from 80.5% last week.

Meanwhile, Hull aquifer levels were at 49.4% - up from 46.6%.

'Healthy position'

Dave Kaye, director of water and wastewater services at Yorkshire Water, said: "Restrictions are still in place for the time being, but we are working to lift them as soon as possible, hopefully within the next few weeks."

"We're now confident we're moving into a healthy position across our reservoirs, rivers, and groundwater water sources, after seeing further rainfall over the last seven days, and another significant jump in our reservoir levels."

Mr Kaye added that the company was working with the Environment Agency to reduce the measures put in place to manage the water resources during the drought.

"This can take a number of weeks, but we will not keep the restrictions in place any longer than is necessary," he explained.

"In the meantime, we will continue to monitor our resources and manage them carefully."

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