AMSTERDAM, July 16 (Reuters) – The continuing drought and heat have caused a water shortage in the Netherlands, the Dutch government said on Thursday.
• Rivers are bringing historically low levels of water into the Netherlands, where it has also hardly rained in recent weeks.
• Measures are therefore needed to evenly distribute supplies and meet rising demand for water, the government said.
• The country had moved from a situation with a “possible” shortage to an “actual” shortage and that situation was expected to remain in the weeks to come, it added.
• The situation does not affect the supply of drinking water, as stocks had already been increased before the summer.
• Ships will likely face delays as locks will be opened less frequently to limit the inflow of salt water.
• Irrigation will also be limited in various places.
• According to the Reuters Climate Monitor, the average high across Western Europe is forecast to be 28.7 degrees Celsius (83.66 degrees Fahrenheit) on Thursday, which is 5.4 degrees above the normal high for July 16 from 1961 to 1990. The average high in the Netherlands of 24.3 degrees is 4.5 degrees above normal.
(Reporting by Bart Meijer; Editing by Joe Bavier)
