Severe drought declared in parts of southern England
Severe drought has been declared in parts of Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Somerset, East Sussex and West Sussex, the government has said. <p>The South East and South West had their driest April to September in over a century, according to the government's environmental department Defra.</p><p>Customer supplies won't be affected but water firms will be told to monitor reservoir and river levels daily, as well as carry out tougher water quality checks due to lower dilution of sewage.</p><p>The announcement has been prompted by concerns over two reservoirs in particular.</p><p>Ardingly in West Sussex, which serves about 95,000 properties is only at 19% capacity, and Wimbleball in Somerset, which serves around 300,000 properties, is at 16% capacity.</p><p>Normal capacity for this time of year should be about 75%.</p><p>South East Water and South West Water have been granted permission to cut the amount of water the two reservoirs send to nearby rivers by millions of litres a day.</p><p>Defra said there are also concerns about levels in the Drift, Stithians, Tottiford and Venford reservoirs, which serve just over 100,000 households in Devon and Cornwall.</p><p>Environment Secretary Dame Angela Eagle said the country hadn't seen this level of drought "for decades".<br /><br />"We are working closely with water companies to protect public supplies in the areas affected, and I'd continue to urge everyone to think about how they can use water wisely over the coming weeks," said Dame Angela.</p><p>The severe drought warning follows the latest meeting of the National Drought Group, which includes the likes of the Met Office, the government, water firms and the National Farmers' Union.</p><p>Environment Agency boss Philip Duffy said the summer heatwaves and severe drought had put supplies "under immense pressure".</p><p>"Recovery depends on both rainfall and how much water we use," he said.</p><p>"We cannot change the weather, but water companies can act now. We expect them to follow their drought plans and take the steps needed to secure public water supplies."</p><p>As part of the counter-measures, the Environment Agency will also increase checks in the affected areas on businesses that withdraw water from natural sources to ensure they are only taking permitted quantities.</p>