September Sewage Pollution in South West England
The Met Office has issued a series of yellow weather warnings for heavy rain across Devon and Cornwall, from the evening of Wednesday September 4th until midnight on Friday September…
Storm Jocelyn Bringing More Rain to the Soggy Shores of SW England
Following hot on the heels of Storm Isha, the storm we have been following for a couple of days has now been given a name by Met Éireann, the Irish…
Storm Isha Heads for West Devon
This morning dawned cold and clear once again, with another glorious sunrise: However that is soon going to change, since later in the day the Met Office in Exeter announced…
Storm Henk Hits Halwill Junction
Earlier this morning the UK Met Office gave the latest inclement weather that has headed our way over the festive season an official name. Storm Henk. Halwill Junction is also…
South West Water Announce Lifting of Hosepipe Ban in Cornwall
Earlier today South West Water issued a press release, which reads as follows: South West Water can confirm we will lift the hosepipe restrictions in Cornwall and Upper Tamar on 25th…
The South West Water Hosepipe Ban’s First Birthday
In the summer of 2022 South West Water announced their first hosepipe ban of the current drought on August 15th:
From 00:01am on 23 August 2022, customers who get their water from us in Cornwall and a small part of Devon will not be allowed to use a hosepipe.
It’s the first time in 26 years but we’ve been left with no other choice. We need to have a hosepipe ban now to protect our precious water.
On April 18th 2023 an extension to the temporary use ban was announced:
South West Water is urging customers to reduce non-essential water usage by extending the Temporary Use Ban, otherwise known as a hosepipe ban, which is already in place in Cornwall and parts of North Devon, to other parts of Devon.
The restrictions are being introduced to protect supplies following lower than average levels of rainfall last year and throughout February.
The hosepipe ban will apply to customers in South West Water’s Roadford supply area and will come into effect from Tuesday 25 April 2023 at 00:01.
While South West Water has taken every precaution to prevent further restrictions being required, Cornwall, Devon and the Isles of Scilly remain officially in drought status as declared by the Environment Agency.
Reservoir levels fell to their lowest recorded level last year and storage at Roadford Lake is currently around 27% lower than it was at the same time in 2022, the equivalent to nearly 3,800 Olympic-sized swimming pools.
It’s raining here in West Devon yet again this morning, as the first anniversary of the imposition of the continuing hosepipe ban rapidly approaches:
(more…)Storm Betty Barrels Towards the UK
Hot on the heels of Storm Antoni earlier this month, the Met Office in Exeter has just issued a press release about the imminent arrival of another mid-summer named storm:…
Is the end nigh for the hosepipe ban in West Devon?
I’ve been following the current drought in West Devon and Cornwall for many months. I was interviewed on the subject by the BBC in March, and by the Daily Telegraph in June. I took this photograph of Roadford Lake on June 1st:
and this one on June 24th for comparison purposes:
Earlier today, in the midst of Storm Antoni, I took this one of the same location:
(more…)Storm Antoni Hits West Devon, In August!
The Met Office in Exeter have issued a high wind warning for tomorrow: Not only that, but also the high winds will be caused by the first named storm of…