Key facts
- Regulators said South West Water has missed leak-reduction and burst-pipe repair targets for seven years.
- South West Water leaks 113.5 million liters a day, 5.7 million liters a day more than last year, the letter said.
- About 325,000 people and thousands of businesses in Exeter and mid and east Devon face risk of regular supply cuts.
- Storage at Wimbleball reservoir, serving South West Water and Wessex Water customers, is at 16%.
- The company must report an action plan to the government and regulators within six weeks.
- Devon county council leader Julian Brazil said South West Water has been warned for seven years while customers pay the highest bills in the nation.
UK regulators have warned South West Water that repeated failures to tackle leaks are putting customers at greater risk of losing supplies as parts of southwest England remain in severe drought. In a joint letter dated October 26, Ofwat, the Environment Agency and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said the privatised company, which serves 1.8 million people, had been failing to meet targets to reduce leaks and repair burst pipes for seven years.
"Leakage is 18.5% above forecast … and increased since the previous year. Given the ongoing drought conditions, these shortcomings are placing customers at a greater level of risk. This is not acceptable," the regulators said in the letter.
South West Water leaks 113.5 million liters of water a day from its pipes and infrastructure, the equivalent of 45 Olympic swimming pools, according to the letter. Leakage is 5.7 million liters a day higher than last year and poses a risk to customers' security of supply, the letter says.
The letter emerged as the National Drought Group prepared to meet on Thursday, with about 82% of England still in drought and severe drought declared in parts of Devon, Cornwall, Dorset, Somerset, East Sussex and West Sussex. The Met Office has said 120% of typical rainfall is needed over seven months to bring the country fully out of drought.
The continued severe drought affects about 325,000 people and thousands of businesses in Exeter and mid and east Devon, who are at risk of having supplies regularly cut off over the coming weeks and months, which could lead to school closures and economic losses. South West Water has written to households in those areas urging them to reduce water usage.
After the driest April to September in more than a century, reservoir levels in some sites are critically low. Storage at Wimbleball, which supplies South West Water customers in east Devon, north Devon, Somerset and west Dorset, and Wessex Water customers in west Somerset, is at 16%.
The joint letter says the failure to tackle leakage has reduced confidence in the company to ensure supplies and avoid emergency abstraction from rivers that will cause environmental damage. It requires the company to report an action plan to the government and regulators within six weeks.
Julian Brazil, leader of Devon county council, said: "Householders and businesses have been told to save water to avoid worse drought restrictions and that it was all down to the dry weather. Now we learn South West Water has been continually warned for seven years it's not doing its bit on leakage and they are still failing, which puts our rivers and wildlife at risk of prolonged environmental damage and may leave thousands of customers and businesses facing supply restrictions."
Richard Stanbrook, South West Water's drought programme director, said: "Recent rainfall is having a positive impact on our water resources, with welcome improvements after months of exceptionally dry conditions. However, pressure on supplies remains significant, and we need sustained rainfall in the right places to replenish our rivers and reservoirs and secure a lasting recovery."
The government also announced that eight new regional water councils were being created to bring local leaders, customers and businesses together to set priorities for water companies and help shape billions of pounds of investment in water and flood infrastructure. Local leaders have been asked to submit proposals for running the new bodies by the end of the year.