The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) has issued a warning over water scarcity.
The environmental regulator published its latest water situation report on 8 May, and this explains that there are persistent dry conditions and reduced river flows across many parts of the country.
The risk of water scarcity is categorised in four levels – Early Warning, Alert, Moderate Scarcity and Significant Scarcity.
The country is currently experiencing growing signs of water scarcity, with half of all river catchments now at “alert” status.
River catchments including Irvine Ayr and the Clyde have been raised to “alert”, while Scotland’s 23 other catchments are all at “early warning”, leaving only the Inner Hebrides classed as normal.
SEPA started warning of a greater risk of water scarcity at the beginning of March, after below-average rainfall over winter following a particularly dry autumn.
Anyone who takes water from the environment – including for agricultural purposes – is being encouraged to manage their use in the coming weeks.
And Council colleagues have been asked to share photos and observations of rivers and burns across North Ayrshire to help SEPA monitor the situation.
Eilidh Johnston, SEPA’s Senior Manager in Water Industry and Rural Economy, said: “With no rainfall forecast across Scotland in the coming days we expect ground conditions to continue getting drier and river flows to decrease or remain low.
“We have been warning since the start of spring that continued drier weather could disrupt agricultural activities, strain local water supplies and impact industries that depend on consistent water availability.
“Prolonged water scarcity can also impact local ecosystems, lower water quality and place additional pressure on native flora and fauna.
“Several industries across Scotland rely on natural water resources, whether it’s for food and drink production, hydropower or maintaining world famous golf courses.
“The next few weeks and months are a crucial time of year for water demand and those who take water from our environment must manage it wisely, minimising the need for restrictions to be imposed by SEPA.”
SEPA is working with key partners, including the National Farmers’ Union of Scotland (NFUS), to share messaging and offer practical advice.
Direct communications are underway with abstractors in catchments at Alert level, reminding them of the need to plan ahead, use water efficiently, and consider voluntary reductions where possible.
The public, land managers and water users are also being asked to share images and observations of local rivers and burns to help build a fuller picture of conditions across the country.
Eilidh added: “We have monitoring points across Scotland, but local eyes and ears are invaluable and help us better understand how the information our gauges are providing matches up with conditions on the ground.
“Photos of dry riverbeds, low flows or impacted habitats help us assess the scale of pressure in places we can’t reach every day.”
If you can supply information and photos, please include:
- the name of the river or burn
- the location (a grid reference is helpful but anything to point to a location is beneficial) and
- a description of the signs of water scarcity stress.
Photographs can be submitted to SEPA by emailing lowflowimpacts@sepa.org.uk
If you would like your image to be credited for use in communications about water scarcity, please state the credit information in your submission.
Alternatively, let SEPA know if you do not want the photograph used for any other purpose than to assess water scarcity.
We have monitoring points across Scotland, but local eyes and ears are invaluableEilidh Johnston – SEPA