JERSEY currently has enough water to last for 93 days if it were to completely stop raining, Jersey Water has confirmed – as it turned on the plant responsible for turning sea water into drinking water.
The utility company has started using its desalination plant, which costs more than £5,000 per day to run, to bolster the Island’s water reserves – which are currently lower than average for the time of year.
Reservoir levels are down by approximately 140 million litres, which equates to roughly one entire week’s supply for the whole island, following one of the driest springs on record and a dry start to summer.
Even though Jersey has had some rainfall in the past week, Jersey Water said it has not been enough to put water supplies in a comfortable position for the rest of the summer.
Currently, no water restrictions are in place for the Island, but the utility company is continuing to monitor reservoir levels and daily demand closely – and “is not ruling out the need for temporary use bans if conditions worsen”.
Mark Bowden, head of water resilience and emergency planning, said: “The recent rainfall has been very welcome, but we remain cautious and will continue to monitor conditions closely over the next month or so.
“Four water companies in the UK have already imposed hosepipe restrictions this summer and, although the situation isn’t currently as severe in Jersey, it remains unpredictable.”
