Officials are preparing to declare a drought in August if dry conditions continue after months of very low rainfall in the UK. Farmers are to be told not to irrigate fields, sparking fears of crop failure, and people are likely to face local rubber bans. Reservoirs are at record lows in some parts of the country where rain has been below average for months. On Tuesday, the Environment Agency’s National Drought Group (NDG), made up of farming groups, environmental experts and government agency representatives, met to discuss the response. They were supposed to meet in October, but the meeting was postponed due to the drastic conditions. Harvey Bradshaw, Environment Agency executive director for the environment and chair of NDG, said: “While last week’s extreme high temperatures are now behind us and there are currently no plans to restrict the use of tap water, we can all we are doing what we can by reducing unnecessary water consumption and following the water company’s advice to ensure this continues while our rivers are extremely low. “Environment Agency teams… are putting in place the first stages of our drought plans in many parts of England to protect people’s access to water and preserve the environment.” Subscribe to First Edition, our free daily newsletter – every morning at 7am. BST. People were asked to take showers instead of baths and not to use hoses to water their gardens. Stuart Colville, policy director for trade body Water UK, said: “The continued warm weather across much of the country follows the driest winter and spring since the 1970s. Water companies have drawn up detailed plans to manage water resources for customers and the environment and are doing everything they can, including working closely with government and regulators to minimize the need for any restrictions and ensure the rivers keep flowing. “As we continue to see extremely high demand, we urge everyone to carefully consider the amount they are using given the unprecedented conditions. The water industry is running a national water saving campaign called Water’s Worth Saving, which provides the public with useful tips and advice on how to do it with water use at home.’ However, it has been pointed out that much water waste does not come from domestic houses but leaks from old water infrastructure. Almost 3 billion liters of water leak every day in England and Wales. Tim Farron, the Lebanese Republic’s environment spokesman, said: “Britain is facing its worst drought since 1976 and ministers are nowhere to be found. The government should take water companies to Downing Street and demand that they fix all leaking pipes as soon as possible. There is not a second to waste.”
