§ Mr. Greville Jannerasked the Secretary of State for the Environment what further steps he proposes to take to deal with Great Britain's water shortage.
§ Mr. Denis HowellThe recent rainfall together with the measures which the Government and the water authorities have already taken should ensure adequate supplies for the remainder of this year provided that water savings are maintained. As regards next year's supplies I hope to make a statement shortly on the Government's conclusions on the Winter Drought Study prepared by the National Water Council.
§ Mr. Greville Jannerasked the Secretary of State for the Environment what effect the high rainfall during recent weeks has had on the United Kingdom's drought condition.
§ Mr. Denis HowellThe rainfall of recent weeks has substantially increased the stocks of water in water authorities' and water companies' impounding reservoirs in England and Wales. In some cases stocks are well above average for the time of year. Most underground water levels, however, are still below the seasonal average.
The general improvement has enabled many of the restrictions imposed on the availability and use of water to be lifted.
§ Mr. Greville Jannerasked the Secretary of State for the Environment what is the state of Great Britain's water reserves; and how these compare with those in each of the previous five years.
§ Mr. Denis HowellIt is not practicable to express Great Britain's water resources quantitatively because a large part is represented by underground water which cannot be reliably measured.
Impounded water stocks have been substantially increased by recent rainfall, but underground water resources, which are replenished mainly by winter rainfall, have benefited only moderately so far.
§ Mr. Greville Jannerasked the Secretary of State for the Environment what were the amounts of rainfall in the month of September in each of the water board 119W areas; and how these compare with rainfall in previous years.
§ Mr. Denis HowellThe information is not immediately available by water
Region Average Rainfall for September 1976 mm Mean Rainfall for September (1916–1950) mm Average as percentage of Mean North-West, Northumbria … … 192 90 213 Severn-Trent, Yorkshire … … 164 64 256 Anglia, South, Thames … … 113 56 202 Wessex, South-West … … 148 79 189 Welsh … … 216 103 210 The provisional general value of rainfall over England and Wales for September 1976 is 158 mm, or 208 per cent. Of the long-term average for the month.