The Environment Agency has granted Southern Water's application for a precautionary drought permit to aid in refilling Bewl Water.
The permit allows the company to continue pumping water from the River Medway system into Bewl when the river has lower flows than Southern Water's usual permit to take water would allow.
The application was made after water levels at Bewl fell below 33% in November 2017 following a very dry winter in 2016 and very low rainfall in September, October and November 2017.
Pumping water into the Bewl is part of the normal winter refill activity. The water company said it would only need to use the permit if lower than average rainfall continued to the end of March 2018. Southern Water's goal is to increase Bewl's water level to 75% by 1 April 2018 - the reservoir has already reached 52.5% full.
The granting of the permit does not mean that temporary use bans, such as restrictions on hosepipes, are being imposed in any area. By taking action now it is hoped that there will be no need to bring in restrictions during the spring and summer, the utility said.
Pumping water from the Medway to Bewl in winter is less likely to have an environmental impact that later in the year. Southern Water and the Environment Agency are also measuring the amount of oxygen in the river - a good indication of the river's health. If oxygen levels drop, pumping will stop.
Dr Alison Hoyle, Southern Water’s director of asset resilience & compliance, said the company would now work closely with the Environment Agency and other stakeholders to ensure Bewl is refilled in a sustainable way.
Southern Water’s is separately pursuing ongoing action on tackling leakage and is now offering to fix leaks on customers' private supply pipes for free during 2018. This brings its total annual spend on finding and fixing leaks to £16 million. In 2016, the Leak Detection team identified and repaired more than 20,000 leaks on 13,800kms of water mains.
Ray Moulds, Sales Director at Flood Control International, takes a look at how automated sliding floodgates are supporting secondary containment at water and sewerage company sites.
With the UK government demanding a 50% reduction in storm overflow spills by 2029, the era of reactive management is over. Speaking in the House of Commons on 21 July 2025, then environment secretary Steve Reed said, “This Government will cut water companies’ sewage pollution in half by the end of the decade.”
ERG, the leading supplier of odour control systems and industrial gas cleaning & thermal systems, has been awarded the coveted King’s Award for Enterprise.
Welsh Water’s new artificial intelligence-driven tool, ORAI, has been shortlisted for three categories at the prestigious British Data Awards 2026 – underscoring the company’s commitment to using cutting-edge technology to deliver better outcome for customers.
Hear how Scottish Water has completed its £235 million Ayrshire Glasgow Resilience Project - customers across Greater Glasgow, Ayrshire and East Renfrewshire will now benefit from a more secure and resilient water supply.
Hear how United Utilities is accelerating its investment to reduce spills from storm overflows across the Northwest.
Find out more about the remarkable career opportunities on offer at WSP - scroll down to watch the inspirational video.