Europe is grappling with an early and intensifying drought in 2025, with nearly 40% of EU territory under official drought warning or alert conditions. Spring 2025 has been exceptionally dry: March and April saw record-low precipitation across northern and western Europe and the second warmest May ever globally, according to the Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S).
In the UK, spring 2025 was the hottest and driest since at least 1893, with reservoir levels dropping below those seen in 2022. Northwest England has declared drought with reservoir capacity at ~77% and is implementing stricter water monitoring. Farmers in the UK are already facing reduced crop yields and low groundwater, with rivers flowing at record low levels for this time of year.
Southern Scandinavia experienced predominantly drier-than-average conditions, expressed by the deficit in precipitation, surface soil moisture and relative humidity, resulting in drier soils and reduced river flows. ISCIENCES forecast for the 12-month period ending in January 2026 indicates that severe to exceptional deficits are expected to continue throughout central and eastern Europe.
Data source: ERA5 (precipitation), ERA5-Land (soil moisture), EFAS (river flow).
Credit: Copernicus Climate Change Service/ECMWF/CEMS.
Source: Copernicus Climate Change Service
Sources: JRC, 5 May 2025 (Drought over large parts of Europe raises concern); JRC, EDO, May 2025 (Current drought situation in Europe); Copernicus Press Release, 10 June 2025 (Exceptionally dry spring in parts of north-western Europe – Second-warmest May globally); Copernicus hydrological bulleting May 2025 (Precipitation, relative humidity, and soil moisture for May 2025); IntelliNews,3 June 2025 (40% of Europe already in a drought before summer gets fully underway) ; The Guardian, 11 June 2025 (Drought fears in Europe amid reports May was world’s second hottest ever); The Guardian, 14 May 2025 (Exceptionally low river flows forecast across UK as drought threat grows); The Guardian, 29 May 2025 (Drought declared in north-west England amid declining reservoir levels); Reuters, 5 June 2025 (UK steps up drought response after driest spring in over a century); ISCIENCES, 20 May 2025 (Exceptional deficits continue throughout central and eastern Europe)
