British government wants to speed up construction of water reservoirs

"With a rapidly growing population, dilapidated infrastructure left to decay and a warming climate, the UK could run out of drinking water by the middle of the next decade without a major overhaul of its infrastructure," the Department for the Environment warned in a statement.

Environment Secretary Steve Reed has taken charge of the planning process for these two reservoirs in eastern England. One is to be built in Cambridgeshire by 2036, the other in Lincolnshire by 2040.

No new reservoirs have been built in the country since 1992, according to the ministry.

These projects are usually the responsibility of local authorities, but the government has decided to take charge by granting them a status of "national importance" in order to "reduce administrative formalities."

"This key step will streamline and accelerate the planning process to secure water resources" for more than 750.000 homes "in areas most affected by water stress in England," the ministry said.

The government will also legislate so that these works are automatically considered to be of "national importance".

Seven more reservoirs are planned across the country by 2050. These infrastructures, to be built by English water companies in several regions, are expected to provide some 670 million additional liters of water per day in the long term.

The UK is experiencing what is "so far the driest spring in more than a century," with 80,6 millimeters of rain since the beginning of March, the Met Office said in mid-May.

The UK Environment Agency convened a meeting of its drought working group two weeks ago and urged water companies to "do more to preserve water supplies."