英国环境署已正式宣布英格兰过半地区进入干旱状态[1][2]。这场干旱波及伦敦、东英吉利亚、泰晤士河谷、汉普郡与怀特岛、德文郡与康沃尔郡、西米德兰兹、威塞克斯等七大区域[1][2]，约2300万民众的日常用水受到管控[2]。
持续的高温少雨天气导致水资源严重短缺。英格兰78%的河流水位低于常年正常水平[2]，而7月降雨量仅为常年同期的7%[2]，其中南部部分区域的降雨量甚至仅为常年均值的1%[2]。英国环境署负责人表示，"炎热干燥的天气意味着我们目前用水速度超过了自然补充的速度"[1]。7月预计将成为英格兰最干燥的月份纪录[1]。
环境署强调，这是"一个异常严重的局面，将对环保、野生动物和经济造成长期影响"[1]。这是英格兰五年内出现的第三轮干旱，此前曾在2022年和2025年遭遇干旱[2]。今年6月，英格兰地区还创下38摄氏度的历史最高气温纪录[2]。
England's Environment Agency has declared that more than half of the country is now in drought, with seven regions—including London, East Anglia, the Thames Valley, Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, Devon and Cornwall, the West Midlands, and Wessex—officially affected [1][2]. The rapid onset of this drought has been driven by exceptionally low rainfall and high temperatures, creating what authorities describe as an urgent crisis [1].
The situation has reached critical levels across the affected areas. July is expected to become the driest month on record [1], with rainfall in England in that month reaching just 7 percent of the long-term average for the same period, and some southern regions experiencing only 1 percent of normal levels [2]. Water levels in 78 percent of England's rivers have fallen below normal seasonal ranges [2], while approximately 23 million people face restrictions on daily water use [2]. Helen Wakeham, head of the Environment Agency, stated: "The hot and dry weather means we are currently using water faster than nature can replenish it" [1]. She added that "a second consecutive summer drought is an exceptionally serious situation and one that will have long-lasting impacts on our environment, wildlife, and the economy" [1].
This marks the third drought to strike England within five years, following previous droughts in 2022 and 2025 [2]. The current crisis has been compounded by record-breaking temperatures, with England recording a high of 38 degrees Celsius in June, surpassing the previous record of 37.7 degrees Celsius [2].