In article , cineman
wrote:

"Stan The Man" wrote in message
...
On January 18, most of the water companies in the south east will
announce that they are lifting their hosepipe bans. Thames Water,
Southern Water, Three Valleys and Sutton & East Surrey Water will all
lift their hosepipe restrictions in response to the above average
winter rainfall. They join Folkestone & Dover water company which
lifted its ban on October 2.

Gardeners should therefore enjoy a trouble-free watering season since
it must be considered unlikely that the water companies will do an
about-turn once the weather warms up.

Dont you believe it, I heard a forecast of long dry summer after wet spring,
it will only take 2 or 3 weeks of dry weather to start the bans again

No, they are hoist with their own petard. As they explained to us
repeatedly over the past year, it is not the spring and summer weather
that causes water shortages but the lack of rain in the winter months
at a time when it would be recharging the aquifers without much
evaporation or take-up by growing trees and other plants. They can
hardly change their tune now.