Drought declared for thousands of Britons amid driest July in 190 years

Drought has officially been declared across swathes of Wales and parts of the West Midlands, Natural Resources Wales (NRW) has said.

The status was implemented following record dry conditions, heatwaves, wildfires and dwindling river water supplies in the region.

It marks the first area of the UK to officially declare drought status this year.

The areas affected by the drought status declaration include North Gwynedd, Ynys Mon, South Gwynedd, Dee (Wales), Clwyd, and Upper Severn.

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The region has received less than 2 per cent of anticipated rainfall for the month thus far, meaning this July is on course to become the driest on record for Wales in almost 190 years without significant rainfall next week.

Exceptionally dry conditions have led to drying riverbeds, mounting concern from farmers about grazing and water availability, and significantly increased the risk of wildfires – with North Wales in particular experiencing a number of major blazes in recent weeks.

River flows across large parts of the region have been marked as exceptionally low, and some locations are recording or are approaching record low status.

In many areas of North Wales, there has been no significant rainfall since July 6, NRW said.

Rhian Thomas, sustainable water and nature manager at NRW, said: “The prolonged period of hot, dry weather we have experienced this summer is now having serious impacts on the environment across parts of Wales.

“We have seen rivers fall to exceptionally low levels, groundwater continuing to decline, and increasing reports of environmental impacts affecting wildlife, fisheries, farming and sensitive habitats.

“The recent wildfires across North Wales and South East Wales are one of the clearest and most visible signs of how dry our landscapes have become.

“Our teams continue to work closely with fire and rescue services, local partners and land managers to respond to these incidents and reduce risks where possible.”

She said: “While drought status does not automatically mean water shortages for customers, it does reflect the growing pressure being placed on our environment.

“We are asking everyone to play their part by using water wisely and helping to protect Wales’ natural resources during this exceptionally dry period.”

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Monitoring by the agency shows groundwater levels continue to fall and river temperatures have been high.

All remaining catchments across south-west Wales have also moved from “normal” to “prolonged dry weather” status, following the same change in status last week for south-east Wales.

As a result, all of Wales is now either in drought or prolonged dry weather status.

NRW said it declared drought when a combination of indicators show a significant shortage of rainfall and water availability, affecting rivers, groundwater, agriculture, natural systems and land management.

While water companies report reservoir levels remain healthy overall, NRW is urging people to use water wisely.

Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water imposed a hosepipe ban on its 33,000 customers on Sunday folllowing an "unprecedented period of sustained high water demand".

Hosepipe bans have also been imposed on millions of Britons, with South East Water, Southern Water, Anglian Water, South West Water, Affinity Water, Cambridge Water, and Thames Water all announcing restrictions and telling customers to conserve water immediately.

Additionally, a nationwide hosepipe ban is in place in the Republic of Ireland in response to the dry conditions.

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