Reservoirs

(asked on 22nd May 2023) - View Source

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of water levels in reservoirs to prevent water shortages.


Answered by
Rebecca Pow Portrait
Rebecca Pow
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
This question was answered on 31st May 2023

The Environment Agency (EA) receive regular data on reservoir levels from water companies. They use this information to report the water situation which is published each month. The information is used in operational, drought management and water planning activities.

Public water supply reservoir storage for England is at 92% of total capacity (as of 16 May) compared to 88% this time last year. EA have assessed the water company’s public water supply projections for this summer and autumn if there was a repeat of the hot, dry conditions experienced in 2022. Overall, water levels are improved, but ongoing action will remain vital for securing our water supply into the future. The EA continue to monitor water availability and work with National Drought Group members to maintain operational planning and ensure the water needs of the public, other water users and the environment are balanced.

Defra recently published its Plan for Water which set out the importance of ensuring a clean and plentiful water supply. The Plan sets out our commitment to a twin track approach to improving water resilience, with action to reduce water company leaks alongside investing in new supply infrastructure. On leakage, the Plan sets out a trajectory for water companies to reduce leakage, with targets of 20% by 2027 and 30% by 2032. The industry has committed to reducing leakage by 50% by 2050.

Water companies have a statutory duty to provide clean and reliable water to customers. To fulfil this duty there are statutory requirements to consult, publish and maintain Water Resources Management Plans, to balance water supply and demand at least twenty-five years into the future, and to develop drought plans setting out the actions taken to maintain secure supplies during drought events.

In addition to their Water Resources Management Plans, water companies are also using the £469 million made available by Ofwat in the current Price Review period (2019-2024) to investigate strategic water resources options, that are required to improve the resilience of England’s water supplies. In April 2023, Ofwat announced that water companies are bringing forward £1.6bn for new infrastructure, starting in the next two years, aimed at improving our water resilience and secure water supplies in the long term.

Reticulating Splines