The UK has had five consecutive months of below-average rainfall and heat waves, with temperatures expected to peak on Saturday as high as 37 degrees Celsius (98.6 degrees Fahrenheit) in some areas. Only two months since the start of 2021 have seen at least average rainfall.
Southern England received just 17% of average rainfall in July, according to the UK Met Office.
“We are currently experiencing a second heat wave after the driest July on record in some parts of the country. Steps have already been taken by the government and other partners, including the Environment Agency, to manage the impacts,” said the water minister. country Steve Double. in a statement. “All water companies have assured us that essential supplies are still secure and we have made it clear that it is their duty to maintain those supplies.”
While a lack of rain and heat are driving this drought, around 3.1 billion liters of water is lost every day in England and Wales due to leaks in the nations’ aging infrastructure. Consumer groups and experts have called on water companies to do more to plug the leaks.
The Environment Agency said in its statement that the government expects water companies to “reduce leakage and fix leaking pipes as quickly as possible and take wider action in line with government policy”.
Several rivers across England have dried up in places, including the Thames, which runs through London. Officials are oxygenating rivers and saving fish where levels are low. Water levels in reservoirs are also dropping rapidly.
The drought declaration means water companies and governments will have to implement drought plans without seeking permission from ministers. Companies are likely to impose more tire bans, which are already in place for millions of people, forcing them to water gardens and wash cars without hoses and avoid filling swimming pools by paddling in the ongoing heat wave. Companies could also draw more water from rivers and other sources to ensure supplies.
The announcement on Friday puts the declared region on a yellow drought alert, meaning several indicators — including rainfall, river levels and flows, reservoir storage and groundwater — are very low.
Thirteen rivers monitored by the Environment Agency as indicators of wider conditions are at their lowest levels ever recorded, while soil moisture is comparable to the end of the 1975-76 drought, one of the country’s worst. This drought was also caused by a combination of extreme heat and consecutive months of low rainfall.
The orange alert is one notch below the more severe red alert and means there is likely to be pressure on water supplies, reduced agricultural and crop yields, local fires and impacts on wildlife and their habitats, according to a previous report of Environment. The London Fire Brigade has also warned of “dry” conditions this week and an “extreme fire risk” across the capital as temperatures are expected to reach 36C (97F) on Saturday and as grass — from grass to public parks and heaths — it’s dry and brown without the usual rainfall. Parts of the capital, including homes and parks, were hit by fires on July 19 during a record heat wave.
Concerns are growing about food security
The UK typically experiences drought conditions every five to 10 years in some areas. The Center for Ecology and Hydrology said drought conditions could continue until at least October. The agency is only looking ahead a few months and climate scientists have warned that if the coming winter is also as dry as last winter, the UK’s food security could be at risk. Liz Bentley, chief executive of the Royal Meteorological Society, said there were already concerns about the drought’s impact on food supplies and affordability. “There are a number of crops that really struggle either because of a lack of rainfall, like the potato crop here relies on rainfall, they usually don’t get water from anywhere else to irrigate the fields. And even some of the other crops that do get water from rivers, for example, to irrigate fields, are really struggling right now,” Bentley told CNN. “Even under the current conditions, yields will go down for a number of crops and the price of those things will go up, and obviously that’s because of the drought here in the UK. But there are other things going on across Europe.” Around 63% of land across the European Union and the UK is subject to drought warnings or alerts issued by the European Drought Observatory, meaning there is insufficient soil moisture. That’s an area almost the size of India, or the three largest US states — Alaska, Texas and California — combined. On 17% of the land, drought conditions are more severe, meaning vegetation is stressed. Experts warn the drought could continue into the fall or even winter, when the nation typically receives most of its rain to store for drier parts of the year. Another dry winter would put even more pressure on food security. “It’s going to continue into the fall and then really, we don’t know beyond that. It depends on whether we see some significant rainfall — good steady rainfall that replenishes the water levels,” Bentley said. “What we don’t want right now is heavy rainfall because the ground is so dry that the water just runs off. It doesn’t soak into the ground.”
