National Drought Group to meet this week as drought declared in the North West

The Environment Agency (EA) has formally declared a drought in the North West of England.

River flows, groundwater levels and reservoir storage have declined in the driest spring for 69 years. The EA said reservoir levels are lower than they were at this time during the 1984, 1995 and 2022 drought years.

The decision will see the Agency increase its operational response, and United Utilities initiate actions in its Drought Plan, such as stepping up customer communications to reduce demand, and submitting drought permits to take more water as needed.

The National Drought Group will meet on 5 June to assess the situation across the country. 

Meanwhile, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency’s latest water scarcity report put only one area as ‘normal’, ten at ‘early warning,’ 24 at ‘alert’ level, and 12 in the more severe ‘moderate scarcity’ category.