Two men, George Lazarides, 30, and Joe Patten, 27, transported 50 liters of water from Brighton to London to assist gardeners impacted by a severe drought and an ensuing hosepipe ban. The pair made a round trip of over 100 miles by car on Monday to deliver 25 two-liter bottles of water.
Unlike Brighton, London has been under a hosepipe ban since July 23, restricting the use of water for gardens, car washing, and filling pools. The water delivered by Lazarides and Patten was labeled "was enough to water one square meter of vegetable garden for a week," according to RHS guidelines which state that a single square meter of vegetable garden needs up to 50 liters of water each week during dry weather.
Lazarides stated that their action was intended to make a point against water companies enforcing what they described as "unfair bans." He noted the disparity of having a hosepipe ban in one county while another, despite also being affected by drought, does not. The pair distributed the water outside Croxted Road Garden Centre and Stockwell station.
Drought has been declared for all of Wales and nearly three-quarters of England. This comes as the UK anticipates another heatwave, with temperatures expected to reach highs of 38C (100F). Approximately 45 million people are currently in drought-stricken areas, and 27 million customers are subject to hosepipe bans imposed by nine water companies due to critically low river and reservoir levels. Some areas in southern England have not seen rainfall in 60 days.
The ongoing drought has prompted warnings from farmers about a "brutal harvest" and potential food price inflation. The situation has escalated to the point where Prime Minister Andy Burnham is scheduled to chair an emergency Cobra committee meeting to address the extreme heat and consider measures such as a ban on disposable barbecues.