Anglian Water says no one prosecuted for breaches of hosepipe ban in Peterborough during UK's hottest summer
Water chiefs say that no one in the Peterborough area has been prosecuted for breaking the hosepipe ban that was brought in mid-way during the UK’s hottest ever summer.
Anglian Water imposed a temporary ban on the use of hosepipes across its region on July 11 – during the UK’s third heatwave of the summer with temperatures reaching a high of 35.5 °C.
The aim of the ban was to reduce what Anglian Water described as ‘exceptionally high water use’ as well as protecting water resources during periods of hot, dry weather.
The hosepipe ban is still in place across the East of England in a bid to help the region recover from one of the driest periods the country has ever experienced.
A spokesperson for Anglian Water said: “The vast majority of customers have been playing their part by putting their hosepipes down and we've already seen demand for water drop as a result.
"If we do get any reports of people using their hosepipes, and those customers aren't exempt from the ban, we'll usually start by reminding them about the restrictions and helping them understand why they're in place.
"In serious or repeated cases, customers could face a fine of up to £1,000, but we're not at that stage with anyone yet.”
The spokesperson added: “When the hosepipe restrictions were introduced, water use dropped by around nine per cent.
"Since then, water use has remained around five per cent lower than we'd normally expect, helping reduce the amount of water we need to take from rivers and other sources.
"These savings are making a real difference at a time when most of our region is in drought and needs to recover from one of the driest periods we've experienced.”
Anglian Water says that although there has been rain recently, rivers, reservoirs and underground water sources are still much lower than normal after months of very dry weather.