England’s water shortage could last until after Christmas, warn the Environment Agency as they officially declared 18 more drought zones across the country.

According to the environmental experts, dry weather over the past few months has left some rivers in England exceptionally low, extending the drought into the Midlands and the South West.

Already the South East and East Anglia are suffering from water crisis and now, Nottinghamshire, Leicestershire, Derbyshire, Staffordshire, most of Wiltshire and the West Midlands have been declared as drought zones.

Amidst fears that England could suffer its worst water shortages since 1976, the Environment Agency has included Warwickshire, Shropshire, Worcestershire, Herefordshire and Gloucestershire, Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Somerset, Bristol, South Gloucestershire and parts of Hampshire in its official list of drought-affected counties.

“A longer term drought, lasting until Christmas and perhaps beyond, now looks more likely”, said Trevor Bishop, head of water resources at the Environment Agency, urging the Brits to use the available water judiciously.

The Environment Agency has already labelled London, the South East, East Anglia and parts of Yorkshire as drought-stricken areas. A hosepipe ban, which was also imposed in parts of southern and eastern England on April 5, 2012, still remains in place.

“As more areas of the UK move into drought it is vital that we use less water to protect the public’s water supply in the driest areas of the country. It’s for everyone to save water. We are asking everyone to help by using less water and starting now”, said Environment Secretary Caroline Spelman.

Read our previous article on Hosepipe ban

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