A period of permanent water shortage has been declared at the initiative of NAK and MAGOSZ

During the period of permanent water shortage, it is possible to use water for value-saving irrigation purposes for 30 days without a water right permit, for which only a farmer’s notification is required. In addition, no water resource contribution is required. All this contributes to mitigating the effects of the expected dry spring period this year through proper water management.

Based on the hydrometeorological conditions and forecasts, the National Chamber of Agriculture and the Association of Hungarian Farmers’ Circles and Cooperatives (MAGOSZ) initiated the declaration of a period of permanent water shortage at the Ministry of Energy. The Minister of Energy then ordered the declaration of a permanent water shortage period starting on March 1, 2025.

The weather on our continent is currently determined by a vast anticyclone, which has caused the weather to be much drier than usual throughout Europe, but especially in most of Central and Eastern Europe. The drought situation in our country is even greater than in February 2022, which was severely droughty. The entire Adriatic region is affected by drought, which is significant because most of the precipitation usually comes from here. Drought also hit our eastern and northern neighbors in February, which has not been typical there in recent years. In our country, the winter water supply period from October to March was much drier than average, with nearly 50% less precipitation in December, nearly 35% less in January, and 50% less in February than the long-term average. Although the amount of precipitation that has fallen in recent days has been satisfactory, it should not be overlooked that a week’s rainfall cannot compensate for the significant water shortage in the watershed. The Carpathian Basin is warming 20% ​​faster than other regions of Europe, the number of hot days has increased radically in recent years, so evaporation losses are enormous. Surface water flows are decreasing, especially in the Great Plain, where 30% of the Tisza’s water flow is missing, and replenishment is also lacking, as there is very little snow in the Danube watershed and practically none in the Tisza watershed. Because of all this, MAGOSZ and NAK initiated the declaration of a water shortage period earlier than usual.