Yorkshire Water says reservoirs down by nearly half

A water company has applied for drought permits to pump supplies from rivers into its reservoirs that remain half empty following months of dry weather.

Yorkshire Water, which supplies homes and businesses across the county, has been granted drought permits to increase its stocks.

The firm said its reservoirs were at 56% of the expected levels because of the dry spell.

The Environment Agency said the permits would last until the end of March.

BBC Look North climate correspondent Paul Hudson said: "Summer 2018 ranked alongside 1976 and 1995 for lack of rainfall and high temperatures."

He said: "Reservoirs across Yorkshire were depleted despite a wet start to the spring and farmers' fields and crops were showing the strain as demand for water set new records."

Katharine Smith from the Environment Agency said Yorkshire Water had applied to extract resources from the River Wharfe and restrict the flow from Grimwith Reservoir in the Yorkshire Dales and several reservoirs in the Sheffield area.

She said: "There has been exceptional demand on the water resources that Yorkshire Water manage, so as a result of that Yorkshire Water are taking preventative action to maintain as much water as they can over the winter so that we're not in trouble when it comes to spring and summer."

Water resources data, which is produced by Yorkshire Water and includes details on reservoir, river and groundwater levels, customer demand, rainfall and the outputs of the company's water treatment works, is to be published on the firm's website.

A spokesman said: "The data shows Yorkshire has experienced below average rainfall in five of the last six months to the end of October, with June being the driest month at just over 30% of the long-term average."

Yorkshire Water's reservoir stocks currently stand at 56% of the level normally expected at this time of year, meaning work is required to ensure that water resources can recover over the winter.

The dry weather also affected Yorkshire Water's network of pipes, as increased ground movement from the ground drying out has resulted in a 50% increase in the number of repairs needed to burst pipes.