Hosepipe ban lifted for Uttlesford residents.

UTTLESFORD’S hosepipe ban has been lifted, Veolia Water has announced.

The water company said the restrictions that have been in place since early April have now ended following the “abnormally heavy rainfall” that has deluged much of the country.

It is one of the last bans to be lifted across the country.

Veolia Water Central and three other companies - South East Water, Sutton and East Surrey Water, and Veolia Water Southeast - issued a joint statement confirming that the ban had been lifted.

Seven water companies across southern and eastern England had brought in the hosepipe bans after two unusually dry winters left some groundwater supplies and rivers as low as in the drought year of 1976.

A joint statement from the four companies said they were heavily dependent on ground water supplies but these have now recovered sufficiently to enable them to lift the bans.

It said: “The companies would all like to thank their customers for complying with the restrictions and supporting their plea to use water wisely. This has kept demand for water well below levels normally experienced at this time of year.

“Significant - or indeed any - recharge of underground resources at this time of year is most unusual but it follows the abnormally heavy rainfall experienced since spring which has finally brought to an end the severe drought after two dry winters.”

Mike Pocock, water resources manager at Veolia Water Central, said: “We would ask customers to please continue to use water wisely.

“While most welcome, this recovery in the aquifers does not remove the underlying problems caused by the drought and we are continuing to plan for the possibility of a third dry winter.”