Southern Water issues hosepipe ban across Hampshire and Isle of Wight

Southern Water has issued a hosepipe ban affecting 1 million people across Hampshire, joining Yorkshire, Thames and South East Water in issuing restrictions.

The ban will come into force across large swathes of Hampshire and all of the Isle of Wight from 9am on Monday.

These areas are mostly supplied by rare chalk streams, the River Test and the River Itchen. Southern Water warned these are at “critically low levels” – down 24% on normal flows for this time of year.

Millions of people across England are now barred from using hosepipes to fill paddling pools, water gardens or wash cars after some areas faced the driest spring on record. People who flout these bans can be fined up to £1,000.

Yorkshire Water has forbidden hosepipe use for 5 million customers, while South East and Thames have announced partial bans for some postcodes.

On Tuesday, the government said four areas of England are officially in drought status and urged more water companies to issue hosepipe bans. The government’s national drought group met on Tuesday to discuss its response to the prolonged dry weather, which has caused mass fish die-offs, low river flows, dangerous algal blooms and the beginnings of crop failures.

If the dry weather continues and the bans don’t work, more stringent measures could be implemented including banning the filling of public swimming pools and cleaning of offices. This came within weeks of happening in the drought of 2022.

This week the Guardian revealed England’s reservoirs are at their lowest levels for a decade. Levels have continued to drop dramatically as the hot weather has increased demand for water and there has been very little rain to refill reservoirs.

Last year the government and water companies announced proposals to build nine new reservoirs by 2050. No major reservoirs have been completed in England since 1992, shortly after the water sector was privatised.

Southern Water’s managing director, Tim McMahon, said: “We have to respond to the widespread and prolonged dry weather affecting our region.

“In our case, this means a hosepipe ban for our customers in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, to protect the health of our amazing chalk streams, which as one of the rarest habitats on earth has been compared to the Amazon Rainforest.

“We must act now to support the wildlife that live there, including Atlantic salmon and southern damselfly.”