River Lossie reaches Significant water scarcity as dry conditions continue across eastern Scotland
Date published: 09 July 2026
The River Lossie has today been raised to Significant water scarcity following prolonged dry conditions and exceptionally low river flows. Temporary restrictions have now been issued on some licences to abstract water from the environment, to help protect river flows and the wildlife that depend on them.
The latest weekly water scarcity report from the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) also shows conditions have been increasingly dry elsewhere across eastern Scotland. The Tyne (Lothian) and Findhorn remain at Moderate Scarcity. The River Esk has moved to Alert, while the Tay and Earn have both been raised to Early Warning.
Recent rainfall has continued to favour western Scotland, while eastern catchments and parts of Moray have remained much drier. This east-west contrast means river flows in many eastern catchments have continued to decline despite wetter conditions elsewhere and much of eastern Scotland is experiencing an increasing risk of water scarcity.
River flows on the Lossie have reached exceptional lows for the time of year. At Sheriffmills, June recorded the second-highest number of low-flow days in the station’s 63-year record, while the beginning of July saw the river’s lowest flows since 2003.
Shona McConnell, SEPA's Head of Compliance, said:
“The move to Significant reflects the conditions we’re seeing in the River Lossie catchment, where prolonged dry weather has resulted in sustained low river flows. Temporary restrictions are now required on some abstractions to help protect the river and the wildlife that depends on it.
“Our weekly water scarcity reporting is designed to give abstractors advance notice of changing conditions, and we’ve been working closely with licence holders and key sectors throughout the season so they can plan ahead.
“SEPA officers will be out in areas where restrictions are in place, ensuring abstractors understand their obligations and helping with any questions they may have. These restrictions are targeted and temporary, and we’ll continue to monitor conditions closely, taking the action needed to protect Scotland’s water environment while supporting those who depend on it.”
SEPA publishes weekly water scarcity reports every Thursday throughout the summer to provide abstractors with up-to-date information on conditions across Scotland. The reports are designed to provide advance notice of developing conditions, supporting sustainable water use and helping water users plan ahead.
Notes to editors
SEPA media releases in 2026
10th March Recovery after 2025 drought, but risks remain, say SEPA
28th May SEPA encourages abstractors to plan ahead following dry conditions
25th June Abstractors urged to plan ahead following recent dry weather
2nd July Dry weather conditions continue in the east of the country
Water scarcity levels
- Early Warning: Conditions are drying. No action required, but abstractors should start preparing.
- Alert: Water levels are falling. SEPA advises voluntary reductions in non-essential water use for abstractors.
- Moderate Scarcity: Environmental impact is clear. Action from abstractors is expected to protect rivers and the species that rely on them.
- Significant Scarcity: Critical river levels. Restrictions on abstraction licences may be imposed.
Data sources
- SEPA Water Scarcity situation report - 9th July 2026
- SEPA’s river level network - Find Scottish water levels information
- Rainfall data for Scotland - Scottish Rainfall Data
- DRAT - Water scarcity data - provided by Scottish Environment Protection Agency
DRAT stations and Significant Scarcity
Anyone can track conditions via SEPA’s Drought Risk Assessment Tool (DRAT), which shows colour-coded stations across Scotland and how close they are to Significant Scarcity.
Clicking on an individual station will show how many days it has been below Q95, a recognised low flow threshold. When a station reaches 30 days the catchments linked to the station will be moved to Significant Scarcity, and SEPA will move to impose any restrictions required.
DRAT is a network of flow gauging stations that SEPA monitor across Scotland and are used to set significant water scarcity when flows have been low for a sustained period of time.
Data has been collected at these stations for a long period of time, so this allows us to give context to what is currently happening with the amount of flow in rivers relative to what you would normally expect.
The river flow stations are each used as a representation of the conditions over an area, called a significant water scarcity area. The area and representative gauging stations are displayed on the tool.
Each station may represent a single river or a group of catchments. For this reason, the number of DRAT stations and areas at Significant Scarcity may be different.
Further support and useful links
The National Water Scarcity Plan explains how water resources will be managed prior to and during periods of prolonged dry weather. This is to ensure the correct balance is struck between protecting the environment and providing resource for human and economic activity.
Report dry private water supplies and rivers and burns in your area to help SEPA assess water scarcity stress.
All water abstractors should be aware of the risk of water scarcity, monitor their water use, and plan ahead for a range of weather conditions. Find further advice for abstractors and irrigators on our website.