Latest rivers report

RIVER levels in Annandale are holding steady despite this week’s changeable weather.

While some areas saw heavy rain and surface water impacts, conditions in much of Dumfries and Galloway have been stable for some time.

The Scottish Environment Protection Agency’s (SEPA) weekly water scarcity report shows that the Rivers Esk, Kirtle Water and Kinnel Water are all above the threshold for low river flow.

Ellie Willmott, SEPA principal hydrologist in water resources, yesterday said: “It’s only July, there’s still a lot of summer to come, and the environmental pressures from low river flows can take much longer to recover from than people realise. We were in a very similar situation in mid-May, where rain provided some recovery – and then another period of hot and dry weather followed. That’s why we’re urging abstractors, particularly in the east, to keep using water efficiently, plan ahead and work with others in at risk catchments to stagger abstractions.

“We’ll continue to monitor conditions closely, publish weekly updates and keep abstractors informed.”