As we all know, this summer has been pretty hot and dry. With at least four heatwaves in a row and rain becoming a hot commodity, plenty of spots across the UK have been declared to be in drought, and even those that haven’t have felt distinctly dry.
Luckily here in Manchester, we haven’t been put under any water bans – yet – but our reservoirs do seem to be struggling. The government’s Dry Weather and Drought in England summary for 24 to 30 July 2026 provides a map of the country’s reservoirs, grouped and categorised depending on their water levels during the back end of July.
Reservoir stocks at key individual and groups of reservoirs for week ending 28 July 2026 as a percentage of total capacity and classed relative to an analysis of historic July values.
For us in the Greater Manchester area, the Pennines group and Derwent Valley are the main groups of reservoirs supplying our water, and the average of the 125 reservoirs pulls the area into the ‘below normal‘ category.
Looking at the rest of the country we could be inclined to feel lucky that our water levels aren’t worse, compared to those in the ‘exceptionally low’ category like Hanningfield in Essex and Wimbleball in Exmoor, but with so many other northern reservoirs also at ‘below normal’ and ‘notably low’ levels, we’re not exactly surrounded by other healthy sources of water.
Having said this, the Dee System, Elan Valley Group, Clywedog and Vyrnwy reservoirs in Wales provide water resources to central and north west England, and not all water levels are purely affected by low rainfall.
As well as for public water supply, some reservoirs are drawn down to provide flood storage, river compensation flows or for reservoir safety inspections. In some cases, current reservoir operating rules may differ from historic ones.
How do high temperatures affect public water supply?
Temperatures remaining high, like in July, has led to many water companies continuing to experience significant demands for water. Combined with the lower than average rainfall, this has resulted in a greater than normal reduction in reservoir and groundwater storage and river flows for several water companies.
How do water shortages affect agriculture?
The prolonged dry conditions are causing significant impacts and pressures across the agriculture sector. Farmers are harvesting crops early in the season, with some having completed harvest already.
It is likely that there will be poorer yields from some crops such as cereals, due to the dry conditions and high temperatures experienced this year. Farmers are also reporting an increase in fires occurring during harvesting as crops are so dry.
The UK salad sector season has ended earlier than normal, so is now reliant on salad imports.
Livestock farmers have already begun using their winter forage reserves because the dry weather has impacted on grass growth.
The Environment Agency implements plans to support early intervention & co-ordinated action
The Environment Agency has strengthened environmental monitoring, increasing both surveillance and operational interventions to identify, assess and mitigate potential environmental impacts as drought conditions develop.
The National Drought Group was reconvened on 20 July to monitor risks, preparation and impacts. It will meet monthly through the summer. The next meeting is on 10 August.
