Britain needs more rain

16th April 2012

Two very dry winters has led to a drought for almost all of England. There have certainly been rainy winters in previous years however with a consistent change in climate; we are now seeing consecutive dry winters which have a direct impact on our farmers, wildlife and landscape which will inevitably affect us all if measures aren’t to be taken.

Farmers are becoming increasingly under pressure to revolutionise the manner in which they farm and are having to plan for a future with much less water due to the current drought.

There is a vast increase in the need for private reservoirs for farmers if they are to continue producing the crops we love. As it stands, they are being forced to alter their crops to those that are less water dependent. And of course, if farmers are not producing the crops in which they are contracted to, they are also facing financial difficulties. Smaller farms are unlikely to be able to alter the manner in which they farm which could potentially leave many farmers out of business.

The current hosepipe ban seems minor compared to the large scale challenges that those we depend upon are facing. Whilst the hosepipe ban is causing an inconvenience for England where we cannot, for example, give our cars a quick wash, this seems minimal to the problems that farmers are facing. If each household were to proactively use water more sparsely, this will help counteract more severe problems next year.

Although households are not seeing a huge change at present, that would soon change if measures aren’t taken. If farmers were forced to invest in long term costly solutions to their problems, this would in turn roll onto us where we would be likely to see an increase in prices for things like soft fruit, vegetables and beer if we were to simply ignore the problems in front of us.

A third dry winter in a row could prove disastrous for our wildlife and their habitat too. If this drought is to continue, it will reduce wildlife’s habitats, kill off their food supplies and leave them vulnerable to predators and disease.

Britain needs more rain.

To read more about the current drought situation see links below.

https://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2012/apr/16/drought-farm-water-desperation

https://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/interactive/2012/apr/16/drought-hosepipe-bans-england-map?INTCMP=ILCNETTXT3487

https://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2012/apr/16/drought-wildlife-farming-disaster-warning?intcmp=239