Water firms lift hosepipe ban
Veolia Water Central - which covers Herts, Essex, Beds and Bucks - has announced it is lifting its hosepipe ban with immediate effect.
Veolia Water Central - which covers Herts, Essex, Beds and Bucks - has announced it is lifting its hosepipe ban with immediate effect.
Three of the UK's biggest water companies have lifted hosepipe bans which have been in place since April.
The Environment Agency says the recent wet weather has greatly reduced the risk of drought and widespread water restrictions this summer.
Veolia Water Central - which covers Herts, Essex, Beds and Bucks - has announced it is lifting its hosepipe ban with immediate effect.
Read the full storyWatch Natalie Gray's report on the hosepipe ban being lifted in much of the Anglia region.
Anglian Water said: "Since we brought in the ban in early April it's really not stopped raining . This is one of the few dry days we've actually had here. Really we had three months of Winter rain in April and then persistent rain since then and that's made the difference for us."
Three of the UK's biggest water companies have lifted hosepipe bans which have been in place since April.
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The Environment Agency says the recent wet weather has greatly reduced the risk of drought and widespread water restrictions this summer.
Read the full storyWater companies in the Anglia region appear to be coming under increasing pressure to lift their hosepipe restrictions.
With speculation that the government is calling for the ban to be lifted before the 2012 Olympics, the Department for the Environment says it does not want to see unnecessary restrictions in place.
Pressure appears to be growing on water companies in our region to lift their hosepipe bans.
Read the full storySome of our region's horticultural businesses are becoming exempt from the hosepipe ban.
For at least the next 28 days, turf growers and landscape gardeners are now allowed to use a hosepipe on private property - for things like bedding in a newly laid lawn.
Anglian Water and Thames Water relaxed their bans after the exceptionally wet April. Veolia Water Central and East have kept their full bans in place, while Essex and Suffolk Water never imposed any hosepipe ban.
– Tim Cannon, Spearhead TurfIt is very essential that the water companies have done this otherwise people would have lost jobs and probably some already have lost their jobs through the loss of trade from the turf harvesting industry.
Despite weeks of heavy rain the Anglia region is still officially in drought although rivers and reservoirs have been topped up.
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