More than half of Britain is now in drought, the Environment Agency has warned, as the UK faces its most severe water shortage since 1976.
Half of Britain is now in drought as the country faces its most severe water shortage since 1976, the Environment Agency warns today.
More than 35 million people are now living in drought-affected areas, with water shortages today declared across the Midlands and South West.
Parts of the country are already drier than they were in the summer of 1976, when Britain experienced its worst drought for more than 100 years.
The drought of 1976 led to standpipes being installed in residential streets, water supplies to businesses being rationed and schools having to close early.
The Environment Agency says similar measures are unlikely to be enforced this summer, but warns the dry conditions will damage the environment and lead to widespread water restrictions.
Total bull. I’ve been through the 2005 drought and it was self-evident in unattended green spaces. There is nothing like that at the moment. Huge amounts of water are transferred to the soil after cold nights, but none of that gets measured.
A “British drought” has less to do with rainfall and more to do with infrastructure planning (or the lack of it). I live in Essex, the heart of the southeast “drought” area, but we are not subject to any water use restrictions because our water company has enough reservoirs.
Most countries on this planet would love to receive as much rainfall as Britian gets in a “drought”. It’s not the weather, it’s the NIMBY’s and Greenies that created this year’s problems.
There’s nothing quite like hearing about the drought were in while driving… and having to put my windscreen wipers on!
Honestly, you Brits. You’re never satisfied. Whinge, whinge, whinge that it rains all the time then whinge, whinge, whinge when it doesn’t.
Why don’t you catch up to us antipodeans down under? We built desalination plants everywhere, then the drought broke. We’re flooding all the time now. Mind you, those desal plants sure look mighty rusty and so forlorn, poor dears. They have nothing to do see?
But hey, if it breaks your ‘drought’. go for it, I say.
We’re only talking a few hundred million or so. But look who’s laughing now?
And you thought we Aussies couldn’t teach the world a thing or two. Ba, humbug!
Most of the climate change discourse is just a repeat of hundreds of years of English chit-chat about the weather