Water scarcity report - 05 June 2025
The Wick and Helmsdale river catchments have been raised to Moderate Water Scarcity. The Spey, Deveron, Ythan, Don (Aberdeenshire), Dee (Aberdeen), Esk, Firth of Tay, Firth of Forth, Tyne (Lothian) and Tweed remain at Moderate Scarcity. The Tay and Esk (Dumfriesshire) have recovered to Alert. Further recovery means that many of the remaining areas are at Early Warning or Normal Conditions, with some catchments still at Alert.
Situation summary
Further heavy rain over the past week has resulted in some recovery of ground and river conditions, particularly in the west of the country. The Tay and Esk (Dumfriesshire) have recovered from Moderate Scarcity to Alert. There has been less notable recovery in the east, with some areas deteriorating, due to the showery nature of the rain and the rain shadow effect. As a result, the Wick and Helmsdale river catchments have been raised to Moderate Water Scarcity.
The recent rain has meant that improvement has been seen in the Conon, Beauly, Ness, Forth, Annan, Nith, Dee (Galloway), Cree, Doon, Clyde, Irvine and Ayr catchments which have all recovered from Alert to Early warning.
In the west, the Firth of Clyde, Northwest Highlands and Kintyre have recovered from Alert to Early warning, with the catchments Leven (Dunbartonshire), Argyll Coast, Loch Linnhe, Loch Alsh and the Inner Hebrides all recovering from Early warning to Normal.
Shetland has recovered from Alert to Normal conditions.
However, some areas of the north and northeast are still at risk of reaching significant water scarcity. If river flows in these areas remain very low, the Avon catchment in the Spey, the Lower Dee and Water of Feugh in Aberdeenshire, and the Helmsdale catchment will be raised to Significant Scarcity next week. You can monitor this on SEPA’s Drought Risk Assessment Tool.
Further rain is forecast in the coming week, however well above average rainfall will be required for water scarcity levels to recover after such a prolonged dry period, especially in the parts of the country where rainfall has been limited in previous weeks. The east of Scotland has seen its second driest spring in 100 years and there are some parts of the east coast that have had below average for the last 12 months.
What do the map colours mean?
| Normal conditions | Early warning | Alert | Moderate scarcity | Significant scarcity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blue | Green | Yellow | Orange | Red |
Water scarcity area descriptions
Weather Forecast
Scattered showers on Friday but accumulations small. Showers becoming more widespread on Saturday with some longer spells of rain possible. Fewer showers on Sunday. Showers or longer spells of rain on Monday.
Advice for water users
We advise water users, including those with private water supplies, to be aware of the potential risk of water scarcity this summer, and for businesses to plan ahead where possible. Advice for abstractors and irrigators.
Supporting information
This section goes into more detail on the data behind the water scarcity levels.
Rainfall and river flows
These maps show rainfall and river flows relative to the long-term average, for this time of year, over 1 month, 3 months, and 6 months.
Recent rainfall has improved conditions across much of Scotland for the 30-day average. Most of the country is now at normal conditions with some parts of west-central Scotland recovering to wet conditions. However, parts of the north, northeast and southeast remain quite dry. River flows over the past month are now more mixed, with much of the east still seeing very low to extremely low flows, while parts of the west now between low and high flows.
Over the last three months, recent rainfall has improved conditions across most of the country from extremely dry to very dry. The southeast and parts of the north and northeast remain extremely dry, but the west is now mostly very dry or dry. Parts of central Scotland have recovered to quite dry or normal conditions. River flows for this period remain extremely low overall, though some areas are showing improvement to very low levels.
Conditions over the past six months continue to be mixed. Much of northern Scotland has seen more normal rainfall, although some areas remain quite dry. River flows in the north are generally between normal and very low. Southern Scotland continues to experience widespread very dry to extremely dry conditions, reflected in very low to extremely low river flows.
What do the map colours mean?
| Rainfall | Extremely dry | Very dry | Dry | Quite dry | Normal conditions | Wet | Very wet |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| River flow | Extremely low | Very low | Low | Quite low | Normal conditions | High | Very high |
| Red | Orange | Light orange | Yellow | Green | Light blue | Dark blue |
Soil moisture deficit
This map shows this week’s soil moisture deficit. This is obtained from the Met Office Rainfall and Evaporation Calculation System (MORECS). Ground conditions are very dry or dry across much of the east of the country. In the west, ground conditions are generally quite dry or show no deficit.
What do the map colours mean?
| Extremely dry | Very dry | Dry | Quite dry | No deficit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Red | Orange | Light orange | Yellow | Green |
Natural water storage – groundwater and loch levels
In each river catchment there is some degree of natural water storage, which can maintain river flows even when it is not raining. This natural water storage is mainly held in lochs and groundwater. When storage has been depleted it will take a lot of rainfall for levels to recover.
The maps below show recent groundwater and loch level compared to the long-term record at each individual station. Level is reported as high or low compared to the typical (‘normal’) level range for the time of year.
Level ranges are specific to each station and based on the long-term (minimum 10 years) record of mean monthly level values recorded at individual stations.
Despite the recent rainfall, due to the lack of recharge over the winter, groundwater levels across most of the country remain low to very low for the time of year.
Locations in Fife and Angus have recorded their lowest May levels on record. For example, the Newton of Falkland Borehole is at its lowest level for this time of year in its 28-year record. Without significant rainfall, levels are expected to continue to fall over the summer.
What do the map colours mean?
| Very high | High | Normal range | Low | Very low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dark blue | Light blue | Light green | Light orange | Dark orange |
Flow, rainfall and groundwater data are accessed via SEPA's time series data service (API). SEPA's live data are subject to ongoing quality control and periodic review.
Scottish Water are responsible for public water supply and distribution in Scotland. Scottish Water reports on the raw water stored in these supplies.
Report copyright
- Current water scarcity levels - © SEPA. Some features of this information are based on digital spatial data licensed from the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology © NERC (CEH). Contains OS data © Crown copyright (and database right).
- Areas of significant water scarcity - OS Data - © Crown Copyright - SEPA licence number 100016991 (2022)
- Rainfall, river flow, groundwater and loch levels - Base map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
- Soil moisture deficit - Data based on MORECS (Met Office © Crown Copyright). Some features of this information are based on digital spatial data licensed from the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology © NERC (CEH). Contains OS data © Crown copyright (and database right). Base map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
- Weather forecast - Crown copyright [2022], Met Office