By Rashleigh MacFarlane

Part of west Cornwall is now suffering from a severe drought, according to the Environment Agency.

Severe drought is the highest level of drought that can be declared.  Stithians reservoir is now less than 22% full – unprecedented for mid-October.

Cornwall has experienced months of below-average rain.

Parts of Devon, Dorset, Somerset, East Sussex and West Sussex are also affected by the announcement, which follows a review of water resources and drought conditions across England by the National Drought Group.

Cornwall has still not recovered from high demand following the hottest summer on record.

The government said customer supplies would be uninterrupted and declaring a severe drought "ensures proactive steps are taken to safeguard water before any disruption occurs."

Ministers are now instructing water companies to conduct daily monitoring of reservoir and river levels and tougher water quality monitoring.

The Environment Agency will increase compliance checks on businesses that withdraw water from natural sources to ensure they are only taking permitted quantities.

Colliford reservoir is at 35% capacity.  This is categorised as “exceptionally low.”

The Environment Agency said a “severe drought” is announced onl when evidence shows drought is causing, or is likely to cause, serious harm and urgent action is needed to protect people, water supplies, the environment, farming, infrastructure and other essential services.

It does not automatically trigger restrictions or mean a civil emergency, but it does signal a co-ordinated response from government, water companies and other organisations to reduce impacts and support recovery.

For the public, severe drought does not automatically mean new restrictions, although water companies may introduce further measures in affected areas to protect supplies.

A hosepipe ban has been in place across the whole of Cornwall since 8^th August.  It is likely to remain until well into the New Year.

Stithians reservoir does not usually look like this.  Below, the Environment Agency map showing areas of severe drought