Water scarcity report - 22 May 2025
The river catchments of the Spey, Tay, Annan, Nith, Dee (Galloway) and Cree have been raised to Moderate scarcity. The Deveron, Ythan, Don (Aberdeenshire), Dee (Aberdeen), Esk, Firth of Tay, Firth of Forth, Almond, Tyne (Lothian), Tweed, and Esk (Dumfriesshire) remain at Moderate scarcity. Most of the rest of the country remains at Alert, except the Inner Hebrides and Outer Hebrides which are at Early Warning.
Situation summary
Due to a further lack of rainfall over the past week, ground conditions have continued to dry out and the already very low river levels have continued to fall across most of Scotland. As a result, the Spey, Tay, Annan, Nith, Dee (Galloway) and Cree have been raised to Moderate water scarcity.
The east of Scotland remains particularly dry, with very dry ground conditions being experienced in many of the river catchments. River flows also remain extremely low and as a result, the Deveron, Ythan, Don (Aberdeenshire), Dee (Aberdeen), Esk, Firth of Tay, Firth of Forth, Almond, Tyne (Lothian), Tweed and Esk (Dumfriesshire) remain at moderate scarcity.
There has been no recovery elsewhere and most of Scotland is now at Alert or Moderate Scarcity except for the Inner Hebrides and Outer Hebrides, which are at Early Warning.
If there is no significant rainfall over the course of the next 7 days, the Liddesdale area, Esk (Dumfriesshire) will be raised to Significant scarcity due to extremely low flows.
Rain is forecast in the coming week, however we will need to see well above average rainfall for water scarcity levels to recover after such a prolong dry period, especially in the east where for example we have seen no rainfall in parts of Fife for over a month. There have also been exceptionally low flows across the country, with the Tilt in Tayside seeing its lowest flow in its 34 year record and the lower Spey reaching the lowest flows for the time of year since records began in 1952.
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
Largely dry on Thursday and most of Friday with the odd light shower in the northeast. On Friday evening a band of rain moves into the west and spreads eastwards with outbreaks of rain across Scotland continuing on Saturday, heaviest and most persist rain on western upslopes. Showers feeding in from the west on Sunday and Monday with heavy, longer spells of rain possible at times in the northwest and some drier spells in the east.
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.
Over the past month, rainfall conditions have been largely dry in the far north and west of the country and quite dry in the Outer Hebrides. Across the rest of Scotland, conditions have been extremely dry. This has resulted in widespread very low and extremely low river flows, however there are three stations at normal in the Inner and Outer Hebrides.
Over the last 3 months, much of the south, north and east of the country has been extremely dry with other areas mostly dry or very dry. This is reflected in the very low to extremely low river flows.
Conditions are more mixed over the past 6 months. Much of northern Scotland has seen more normal conditions, although there are some stations showing quite dry to very dry. River flows in the north are generally between normal and low. In the north-east, rainfall conditions have been generally quite dry to very dry, with normal to low flows in the area. Southern Scotland however, has experienced widespread very dry to extremely dry rainfall conditions, which is reflected in the 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 across much of east coast of Scotland, except from the far north. The rest of the country is dry.
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.
Based on the April average, groundwater levels, from our monitoring points across the country, remain generally low to very low for the time of year. This is due to significantly lower than average rainfall in recent months resulting in limited recharge over the winter and spring periods. Levels are particularly low across the east of the country and are in some parts of Fife and Angus are lowest on record for this time of year. Groundwater levels in the Moray area remain normal or above.
Based on the April average, loch levels, from our monitoring points, are very low for this time of year across the far north, with levels elsewhere variable between normal and very low for the time of year.
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