Drought continues 'despite rain'

Wet weather has had little impact on the drought in the South East, the Environment Agency has said.

Its latest update said groundwater was still low, and reservoir levels were declining and could be low by October.

A spokeswoman said: "August has been wet and some people were wondering if that means the end of the drought.

"We've had over a year of below-average rainfall, so a month of wet weather, although it helps demand, doesn't have much impact particularly in the South."

There is now little chance of improvement ... until autumn and winter Environment Agency

Adding that rainfall in August had helped to keep demand down, she said: "More than 70% of the public water supply in the South East comes from groundwater.

"Summer rainfall will not improve groundwater levels because it either evaporates from the ground or the plants take up most of the water.

"There is now little chance of improvement to groundwater levels until autumn and winter if we get the rainfall."

Environment Agency statistics for 16 to 22 August showed it was the second wettest week of 2006.

But while there was 50mm of rain in the North West, the South had 18mm, making it the driest region in the country that week.

Figures for the month up to 22 August show that England and Wales received 59mm overall, or 77% of the August long-term average.

Hosepipe bans

The agency has warned people and businesses to be careful about how much water they use.

It also said that hot, dry weather would cause further environmental problems.

Nearly 13 million people are still affected by a hosepipe ban in the South East.

The South East has been in the grip of a drought since November 2004, with only two months of above average rainfall since then.

Eight water firms have been operating hosepipe bans, while Sutton and East Surrey Water also has a drought order in place.

There have been flash floods in parts of Hampshire, Surrey and Sussex recently, but the hottest July on record saw rainfall down by nearly 50% on 2005.