'Water upgrade will help tackle drought challenge'

A £9.5m project to construct a new borehole and service reservoir will help Yorkshire Water's response to hot weather, the company has said.

The construction work, which also involves a new pumping station, is under way near Malton and Norton in North Yorkshire.

Locations for such work are chosen because of demand for resources or a need to review existing assets, according to Rachael Fox, head of non-infrastructure capital delivery.

"It gives us more options with where we can draw water from, additional pumping options in terms of how we can move water around the region," she said.

"So it really supports us to maintain that level of service that we need and that our customers expect."

After the driest spring in 132 years, Yorkshire Water introduced hosepipe restrictions in July 2025.

They remained in place until 10 December, when a six-month period of drought also ended.

Fox said the project near Malton, due to be completed in winter 2027, "significantly supports" the firm's response to drought.

Additionally, the 59-66ft (18-20m) borehole would help to support 1,000 new properties in the area, she added.

There are only two similar projects planned during a five-year period until 2030, as part of the company's overall £34m investment into water management.

"Boreholes are not projects that we're doing massively regularly," Fox said.

She added that the overall efforts to manage water supply would be assisted by a £406m project to replace 630 miles (1000km) of water mains.

Fox said: "That will significantly reduce leakage.

"Leakage is already now at the lowest we've ever seen it, but we're continuing.

"We know how important that is and we're continuing to drive that down."

Listen to highlights from North Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North.