Yorkshire Water Thanks Customers as Water Usage Drops 100 Million Litres

Yorkshire Water has thanked customers for putting the hosepipes away, using water wisely and continuing to report leaks over the hot weekend.

Water usage dropped by 80-100 million litres compared to the previous heatwaves in June – the equivalent to Hull’s daily supply. 

Usage hit 1.39 billion litres on Saturday (12 July) and 1.37 billion litres on Sunday (13 July) as temperatures soared in the region, compared to 1.47 billion litres during the heatwaves of on 20 June and 30 June. 

Dave Kaye, director of water at Yorkshire Water, said:

“We understand the hosepipe restrictions are frustrating, but we’d like to thank customers who have put down the hosepipes over what was an extremely hot weekend. Usage decreased significantly compared to the previous heatwave. 

“It’s important we all continue to do out bit to protect resources further into the summer and with some rainfall predicted in the next few days it’s a good time to install a water butt and collect grey water that can be used on gardens through the summer.” 

As well as reduced demand, there has been a 52% increase in leaks reported by customers over the last two weeks. More than 330 leaks are fixed per week, and Yorkshire Water teams are out and about 24/7 throughout heatwave completing repairs to save as much water as possible. 

Dave added:

“We’d also like to thank customers who are reporting leaks to us. Taking the time to report leaks and not walking past them is vital. It helps us, particularly with smaller leaks, to investigate quickly and get the repair completed as soon as we can. Leaks with blue markings around them have been investigated and are awaiting repair, which we try to do as quickly as possible, prioritising the most severe or those impacting customer supplies. 

“Every leak is different and there are factors that mean we can’t always repair them as quickly as we would like. Repairs in the road require permission from local authorities and there is also the possibility of other utilities in the ground in the repair area, which requires additional time. The removal of road furniture and street lighting, the need to shut off water supplies for a short time which needs to be carefully planned, and customers notified, as well as the possible traffic implications can all cause delays too, but we are committed to fixing leaks as quickly as we can. 

“We’re all in this together – the vast majority of our colleagues are customers too - and we’re all doing our bit at home and in the workplace to save water.” 

A hosepipe ban came in to force across Yorkshire last Friday following the driest and warmest spring for 132 years, which led to the region being declared in drought.

Activities that are not permitted while the temporary restrictions are in place include:  

•     Using a hosepipe to water a garden  
•     Using a hosepipe to clean private vehicles or boats  
•     Watering plants with a hosepipe on a domestic or other non-commercial premises 
•     Filling or maintaining a domestic swimming, paddling pool, hot tub or cold-water plunge pool with a hosepipe 
•     Using a hosepipe for domestic recreational use 
•     Filling or maintaining a domestic pond or ornamental fountain using a hosepipe 
•     Cleaning walls or windows of domestic premises using a hosepipe 
•     Cleaning paths or patios using a hosepipe 
•     Cleaning other artificial outdoor surfaces using a hosepipe 

People can still wash their car and water their gardens without using a hosepipe if they use tap water from a bucket or watering can; or use water that is not sourced from taps such as grey water, rainwater from a water butt, or a private borehole.  

Businesses will be allowed to use a hosepipe if it is directly related to a commercial purpose. There are restrictions on using a hosepipe if not for those essential commercial needs – so using a hosepipe to clean a path outside a business property, for example, would not be allowed.  

Blue badge holders, those on Yorkshire Water’s Priority Services Register or WaterSure tariff for medical reasons, are also excluded from the restrictions.