Anglian Water Fines Those Using Hosepipes During Ban

Anglian Water confirmed that no fines have been issued following the implementation of a hosepipe ban across parts of Norfolk and Suffolk, which began on July 11 during the region’s third summer heatwave. Meanwhile, Uisce Éireann introduced hosepipe bans across Ireland, carrying statutory penalties of up to €5,000 for non-compliance.

Norfolk and Suffolk Hosepipe Restrictions and Enforcement

From 1am on July 11, people in parts of Norfolk and Suffolk were banned from using hosepipes to water gardens, clean vehicles, or fill paddling pools, under restrictions imposed by the company. The ban is the first of its kind in the region since 2012 and comes with the region’s current enduring its third heatwave of the summer. Anglian Water has confirmed that nobody has yet been fined for using their hosepipe during the ban in Norfolk. Anglian Water has confirmed that nobody has yet been fined for using their hosepipe during the ban, which has so far lasted a week.

The company stated: The vast majority of customers have been playing their part by putting their hosepipes down.

If we do get any reports of people using their hosepipes, and those customers aren't exempt from the ban, we'll usually start by reminding them about the restrictions and helping them understand why they're in place. In serious or repeated cases, customers could face a fine of up to £1,000, but we're not at that stage with anyone yet. The

Regional Border Discrepancies in East Anglia

Some parts of Norfolk and Suffolk, including Great Yarmouth, Lowestoft and Beccles, are covered by Essex & Suffolk Water, which has not put a hosepipe ban in place. Kieran Ingram, water director at Essex & Suffolk Water, said: “It takes a great deal of effort to turn rainwater into clean, safe, drinkable water for everyday use, and the recent spell of hot, dry weather has led to a significant increase in water demand across Suffolk. Because of this, we need to formally appeal to our customers to show restraint with their water use and ask them to help us by considering how they use water.” Although there is currently no hosepipe ban in place, Essex & Suffolk Water is closely monitoring the situation and preparing for potential restrictions.

Water-Conservation Orders and Rules in Ireland

A hosepipe ban is properly called a water-conservation order – a legal order issued by Uisce Éireann prohibiting use of water in certain specified ways that are deemed non-essential. It is imposed at times when water supplies are strained. Uisce Éireann issued a hosepipe ban that took effect from Thursday, July 16th, and will remain in force until August 26th in Dublin, large parts of Wicklow, Kildare, Meath, Wexford and south Tipperary. It then issued another one that is to come into effect from Friday for all 26 counties. It comes into force from a minute past midnight on Friday morning and will last until August 26th.

The colloquial name indicates that it prohibits using a hosepipe to water gardens, wash cars or private leisure boats, fill or maintain ponds or fountains – except where there are fish – and fill or maintain domestic swimming pools and paddling pools. Paddling pools may be filled from the tap by hand-held containers, however. Running a hosepipe for 15 minutes uses about a quarter the water an average family uses for all their needs in a day.

Uisce Éireann has issued a hosepipe ban that will be in effect until August 26th. Photograph: iStock — Photo: irishtimes.com

A fine of €125 applies to each offence and, if the matter is serious enough to reach court, a fine of up to €5,000 can be imposed on conviction, though people are never fined or convicted. Uisce Éireann usually reports that issuing an order is sufficient to convey how serious the water situation is and people ease up on their usage, and it usually finds that where breaches are discovered, a request to desist generally does the job. Members of the public sometimes report banned activities on Uisce Éireann’s incident notification line, while flow meters help pinpoint leaks by detecting unusually large flows of water so they can flag suspiciously high usage.

Householders can use a watering can and deploy pre-used water – from washing dishes or rinsing clothes, for example – to water tomato plants or gardens. Having a hosepipe ban in Ireland in July has been quite a regular feature of the Irish summer in recent years. In 2018, a ban was introduced in the Greater Dublin Area at the start of July and extended to the whole country weeks later, lasting until the end of September. In 2020, a nationwide ban was introduced in early June and was due to run until late July but was lifted early after heavy rain. A limited ban was imposed in 2022, covering west Cork for a period from late August. Last year, Uisce Éireann issued its earliest ever hosepipe ban, which covered parts of counties Donegal, Meath and Westmeath from May 1st and was later extended to more counties.

Sources: eveningnews24.co.uk.