Yorkshire has officially entered drought status, due to low water levels in reservoirs and rivers.
This announcement follows the declaration of prolonged dry weather for the area at the end of July, due to the lack of spring and summer rainfall.
The National Drought Group, which includes the government, Met Office, regulators, water companies, farmers, Canal & River Trust, anglers and conservation experts, is now meeting weekly to monitor the situation and coordinate action as part of the heightened incident response.
Emma Hardy, Water Minister, said: “Long-term resilience against our changing climate is a priority for this government. Our strengthened Water Bill will start a decade-long journey to a very different water system, including nine new major reservoirs to secure supplies.”
The government has emphasised that droughts can happen at the same time as flooding and the Environment Agency (EA) says it is closely monitoring the risk of both and is ready to respond to either event.
The EA is encouraging members of the public to report environmental incidents to its 24/7 hotline on 0800 80 70 60.
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