No hosepipe ban in 2024

Reservoirs full

Devon or Cornwall shouldn't suffer hosepipe bans this year, even if becomes hot and dry for prolonged periods.

A hosepipe ban was put in place in Cornwall and parts of North Devon in 2022 and was extended to other parts of Devon in 2023.

But the past 18 months have been the wettest since data began to be collected, according to the Met Office.

Now the two biggest strategic reservoirs in the region – Roadford Reservoir in Devon and Colliford Reservoir in Cornwall - are full.

South West Water says it is investing over £125 million to increase water resilience in the two counties.

David Harris, South West Water’s drought and resilience director, said: “While it may seem obvious that recent heavy rainfall has led to increased reservoir levels across the region, over one-third of the additional storage has come from our own supply interventions and customers reducing their own usage.

“As a direct result of our investments, interventions, the weather and our customers reducing their use of water, we are confident that we are in a strong position to navigate whatever weather we face this year without the need for water restrictions. This does not mean we will stop our efforts there, we will continue to invest and deliver clean water supplies across our region and prepare as much as we can for climate change and unpredictable weather patterns.”