50 years since Wales ran dry: Why preparing for drought in a rainy country matters

This year marks fifty years since one of the most dramatic and defining weather events in Welsh history

The drought of 1975/76 was extraordinary – rivers ran dry, reservoirs emptied, crops failed, and communities across Wales faced water shortages unlike anything seen before. For the first time in most people's lives, water – usually plentiful in Wales – suddenly felt like a scarce resource.

A turning point for water management

The events of 1975/76 were an extreme case – an unusually dry winter followed by the hottest and driest summer on record at the time.

Thankfully, such severe impacts have not occurred again in Wales since, and a lot of that is due to changes in water management implemented since.  It was the kind of event that reformed how we plan for, and respond to, drought.

And the lessons learnt during that fateful summer would be put to the test many times in the years to come… 

1976 wasn't a one-off

While 1976 remains the most severe drought in recent Welsh memory, it's far from the only one. Wales has experienced significant droughts in 1984, 1989, 1995/96, 2003, 2005/06, and more recently in 2022 – and again in 2025.

The drought in 2022 was particularly significant for public water supply. The whole of Wales was in drought by late summer and temporary use bans (also known as hosepipe bans) were introduced in western parts of the country.

Then as recently as last year, in 2025, the majority of Wales entered drought after another long dry and hot spring/summer which made the record books. While public water supplies weren’t impacted, the 2025 drought had wide-reaching effects on the environment, wildlife, agriculture and other water users. Rivers ran low, groundwaters dried up, farmers struggled to keep livestock fed and watered and fish populations were threatened by rising river temperatures.

Then in a dramatic turn of events, the rain came in September and brought one of the wettest periods in 190 years between September and November – and devastating flooding to Monmouth and other part of south-east Wales.

It was another reminder of what a changing climate looks like in Wales.

Photo credit: The Mary Gillham Archive Project

Come rain or shine: How we monitor and plan for drought in Wales

Whatever the weather, our drought monitoring and planning is a core part of what we do and is always going on behind the scenes. As we prepare for more impacts from climate change, and the likelihood of wetter winters and drier, hotter summers, our role is to ensure Wales is more resilient to drought.

Our drought plan sets out exactly how we identify, monitor and manage drought conditions across Wales. This covers everything from the early warning signs that dry weather is developing, right through to the actions we take when a drought is formally declared – and how we manage the recovery afterwards.

We have a large network of teams on the ground who monitor river flows, rainfall records and groundwater levels all year round to keep an eye on how water is moving around the country. We receive data from the water companies in Wales to keep a track on how reservoir levels are faring and vital intel from the Met Office to help us anticipate what might be coming.

When the data tells us conditions are deteriorating, we move through a series of defined drought stages, each with its own triggers and associated actions. This structured approach means we're making decisions based on evidence, and doing so in a timely way – rather than waiting until things get critical.

As Wales’s environmental regulator, we also have a role to play in setting the guidance for water companies’ drought plans for maintaining water supplies during a drought, as well as for their long term water management plans for the next 25 years and beyond.  We have challenged all companies to ensure there is enough water for nature and people while building in resilience to more severe droughts, worse than the 1976 experience.

Photo credit: The Mary Gillham Archive Project

Ensuring there is enough water for nature and people

When most people think of drought they usually think about the impact on people and restrictions on the kind of activities we do at home and in the garden.

But drought effects so much more than that.

During a drought, we're likely to deal with a whole host of environmental issues and incidents including:

• Fish struggling for oxygen.
• Managing appropriate releases of water from reservoirs to keep rivers flowing and support abstractions on those rivers.
• Restricting the amount of water businesses can abstract from rivers and groundwater to protect vulnerable sources.
• Advising farmers on how to manage livestock and crops in dry conditions.
• Advising anglers about restrictions when river temperatures are high.
• Working with recreational water users affected by low water levels.
• Supporting the fire and rescue services tackle wildfires.
• Protecting peatlands and wetlands from drying out.

None of this happens in isolation. When the evidence shows there is a risk of a drought developing, the Wales Drought Liaison Group convenes, bringing together Natural Resources Wales and a number of experts and professionals to respond to the emerging concerns. This is chaired by the Welsh Government and can include representatives from water companies, the Environment Agency in England (for cross-border issues), farming unions, local authorities, the Met Office and Public Health Wales.

Getting the right information to the right people at the right time is just as important as any of the technical measures we put in place.

Planning for a more unpredictable future

We know that climate change is making our weather more unpredictable, and this means that water will be less reliably available throughout the year. Changes in rainfall patterns mean that even when total annual rainfall remains similar, it may be increasingly concentrated in short, intense bursts – with longer dry spells in between. This means Wales may enter drought more frequently, or droughts may be more severe in the years to come.

That's why our work on drought planning and management isn't just about responding to today's conditions – it's about making sure Wales is prepared for a future where dry weather events could be the norm rather than the exception. That means working with Welsh Government, water companies and other partners on longer-term policies, plans and strategies, and thinking carefully about how we build resilience into the way we manage water and natural resources across the board.

Fifty years on since the 1976 drought and the data, processes and partnerships we have are much more refined. They have been tried and tested again and again, and we will continue to develop our understanding, expand our data sources and improve our response as we face the challenges ahead.

And as a society, we can all do our bit to use water wisely to help protect our rivers, lakes and wildlife for the future.

Each day we all use more water than we think we do – on average, around 100 litres more. Every drop we waste is less water to keep our environment healthy.

For water saving tips and advice, visit Waterwise or your local water supplier – Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water or Hafren Dyfrdwy.