Will there be a drought I live in?

If you live in northwestern England or Yorkshire, you are already in the official state of drought, says the Environmental Agency, and people living in other English regions could follow if dry weather continues.

Those of us in the eastern Scotland or parts of Wales also notice low water levels, according to water companies there.

Drought can affect the various aspects of our lives and the environment. To farmers can make it difficult to grow crops, harm nature and mean that you need to change the way you use water.

Yorkshire became The first region to declare a bowel ban This year, for example.

So how is your area going and how close are you to drought? Here’s a look at what is happening all over the country, including our rain, rivers and tank.

There is no unique definition of drought or lack of water – a measure in Scotland – but it takes a long period of low rain.

The rain was falling less than usual in almost all of the UK between March and May, the sixth state -of -the -art spring in the UK since they started the 1836 record.

So, there were less moisture for the upgrade of our rivers, reservoirs and rocks underground.

If this lack of rain continues for a long time, it can strain the supplies of water that serve our homes and companies.

There was a little more rain in June than average for the UK, but with a big difference between the East and the West.

Parts of northern Ireland, western Scotland, Wales and southwestern England have seen wet conditions than usual. But most of central and eastern England and Scotland saw the dry weather continuing.

Long -term forecasts suggest more dry than average conditions through most of July, and perhaps August.

This would further increase the risk of drought.

The monitors in the rivers show us how to flow. At the end of May, these river flows are classified as “below normal” or lower by about three quarters of the supervised location across the UK.

About five experienced the “extremely low” flow.

Temporary June data don’t look much better.

The river flows at the end of last month were approximately the same as – or even below – the previous droughts from 1976, 2011, 2018 and 2022. For many Eastern, Central and Southern Regions, said Lucy Barker, Hydrologist from the UK Center for Ecology and Hydrology (Ukceh).

The soils are also much dry than usual in large parts of the UK, especially England, shows data in UKCEH.

Dry soil damage to plant growth, hitting ecosystems and crop production. This dried vegetation also reaches a higher risk of fire.

Dry soils also heat faster, which can enhance heat waves.

The reservoirs are a key part of water supplies in northern England, Scotland and Wales.

At the end of May, English tanks were at their lowest combined level in the time of the year in records that were returned for over 30 years.

The levels of tank in the northeast and northwest were extremely low – an important factor for drought Yorkshire AND Northwest.

The main reason for this, of course, is the lack of rain, but other factors can affect a small number of accumulation.

At this time of year, the Scottish tanks are 85% full. At the end of June, they were at 79%, according to Scottish Water. They are even lower in Eastern Scotland.

In Wales, most are about normal, although they are tanks serving medium and southern Credigion in Western Wales below average, said Welsh Water.

The tank levels are around the average in Northern Ireland, according to Water.

Much of Southeast England relies more on the groundwater than the tank.

The groundwater originates as a rain and is naturally stored below the surface in pores in pores and fractures in the rocks. Rocks that store a lot of groundwater are called aquifers.

This makes a third of the water supply of England, although this is much larger in the south and east.

This comes down to the diverse geology of the UK, which affects how much water can be stored in the country.

Water can flow faster through some types of rocks from others, sometimes for years to respond to current conditions.

This is the case for parts of southern and eastern England, which is why these regions are currently closer to normal.

These groundwater stores “slowly respond to changes in the climate from rivers, which is why they provide a useful tampon during a drought period,” said prof. Alan Macdonald of British Geological Research.

Because of this, droughts are groundwater in the south mostly they need for a long time, but they can be longer lasting if they appear.

People and nature already feel effect.

“It’s pretty shocking that we’re still just just [in early] July, said Rachel Hallos, Vice -President of the National Faculty of Farmers, for BBC News.

“It’s like the end of August when you look at the country.”

With this little rain, farmers had to irrigate the water on their crops.

It made them more expensive things, which means that there is even less water.

There is a distributed concern about the months ahead, Mrs. Hallos added.

“What will I have to pick up? What will I have to feed cattle over the winter?”

And there is an impact on wild animals.

A spokesman from the charity organization for the protection of RSPB birds said that a great challenge ensured that enough water became key habitats of wetlands to make birds safe for the nest.

“We need to think about our places to become more resistant to climate change, because these periods of prolonged dry weather become the norm.”

And they are not just birds that love water that they have hard. Even in our gardens, usual visitors like Blackbirds can fight to find worms and insects on our exhausted lawns, RSPB says.

Droughts are complex phenomena, guided by a mixture of natural and human causes.

Met Office expects the UK in the future to experience a dry summer in the future while the world is warming up, although there has been no clear trend so far.

But growing temperatures can play a fundamental role by release of moisture from the soil evaporation.

“The warmer atmosphere is thirsty for moisture, which can mean that water in the soil, rivers and tanks are more effectively exhausted, leading to faster droughts, heat waves and wild fires,” said Richard Allan, professor of climate science at the University of Reading.

But there are other factors that determine whether dry conditions lead to lack of water, including the way we use water.

As part of plans to deal with water deficiency, the government plans Nine new tanks for England by 2050In addition to one that is built in Havant Fuget -U Hampshire.

But the Environmental Protection Agency warned that measures to combat water leaks and control of water demand – potentially including bowel bans and more smart meters – May be required and in England.

Water companies in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland also said they were taking steps to ensure future supplies.

Additional Reporting Dan Wainwright and Christine Jeavs