There is little water in Lake Balaton and major rivers, but there is no reason to panic

At the beginning of the summer season, there is less water in Hungarian lakes and rivers than in most recent years, but the low water level is not considered extraordinary – Gabriella Siklós, spokesperson for the National Directorate General of Water Resources (OVF), reported this on InfoRádio.

Balaton: low, but not unprecedented water level

In the last week of June, the water level of Lake Balaton was 99 centimeters, which, although considered low, is not at all egregious. Gabriella Siklós reminded that three years ago, in 2022, the lake’s water was at a similar level, while in the spring of 2023, due to abundant rainfall, a 20-centimeter higher water level was registered.

The peculiarity of Lake Balaton is that it has a small catchment area and there is no possibility of external water replenishment, meaning that the lake cannot be “filled” artificially. In recent years, OVF experts have consciously set a higher operating water level for spring and summer in order to keep as much water as possible in the lake, but this would of course also require precipitation, which was not the case this spring.

Lake Velence: no reason for concern for now

The situation of Lake Velence is similar. Currently, its average water level is more than 100 centimeters, which, based on long-term statistics, does not cause serious concern. According to the OVF spokesperson, the water level was much lower in 2022 during the same period, and last year it was 40 centimeters higher.

The lake is replenished by direct flow, through reservoirs, but the problem is the same here: there has been hardly any precipitation in recent weeks, so the replenishment has also been lacking.