THE UK GOVERNMENT has advised people to delete old pictures and emails amid a “nationally significant” water shortfall in England.

Five areas in England are officially in drought, with six more experiencing prolonged dry weather.

Despite unsettled weather last month, many river flows and reservoir levels in England have continued to recede and the National Drought Group has said that rainstorms and showers “helped mask the fact that July was still the fifth warmest on record”.

As of the end of July, England has had its driest six-month spell since 1976 and August has seen the fourth heatwave of the summer, putting more pressure on public water supplies.

There appears to be no or little let-up in the dry conditions for some areas in the coming days, according to the UK Met Office.   

Water restrictions have been put in place across some areas of England and the National Drought Group has thanked the public for following restrictions where they are in place.

The Baitings reservoir in Yorkshire has dried to a point where an ancient packhorse bridge has been exposed . Alamy Stock Photo Alamy Stock Photo

Its chair, Helen Wakeham, added that “simple, everyday choices – such as turning off a tap or deleting old emails – also really helps the collective effort to reduce demand”.

As well as deleting old emails, the National Drought Group has urged people to delete old pictures as well as “data centres require vast amounts of water to cool their systems”.

Dr Venkatesh Uddameri, a Texas-based expert in water resources management, recently told the BBC that a typical data centre can use between 11 million and 19 million litres of water per day, roughly the same as a town of 30,000 to 50,000 people.

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In addition to deleting old photos and emails, the National Drought Group advises people to fix leaking toilets, as these can waste up to 400 litres a day, avoid watering lawns, turn off taps when brushing teeth, and take shorter showers.

The UK’s National Drought Group includes the Met Office, regulators, government, and water companies.

Chief Meteorologist at the Met Office, Dr Will Lang, noted that temperatures are getting towards the mid-30s for some in the south of England.

Meanwhile, over £700 million (€810m) has been committed by water companies to tackle leaks over the next five years.

The UK’s Environment Agency is conducting more compliance checks on businesses and ensuring water companies follow their drought plans.