Wigeons and Shovelers are among the animals most at threat from drought.

THIS summer could be the worst for wildlife in Suffolk and Essex in 30 years if rainfall does not significantly increase over the coming months.

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The environment is still feeling the effects of last year’s particularly dry spring and autumn months.

Rainfall has been so low that in many areas the level of moisture in the soil is worse than in 1976, when the UK suffered one of the most severe droughts on record.

The Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust (WWT) has issued a stark warning that the region needs well above average levels of rainfall over the coming months to make up for the lack of moisture in the ground.

WWT’s Head of Wetland Conservation, Rob Shore, has been hearing worrying reports from WWT’s wetland reserves around the country.

Among the WWT sites across the UK to be affected is Welney in Norfolk, where wintering wildfowl including wigeon are suffering this winter.

Mr Shore said: “We haven’t yet had the dreaded hosepipe ban warnings but wildlife is the proverbial canary in the cage.

“We want Government to tackle this problem before it gets out of hand – not just relieving the problem this year but by putting plans in place to prevent this happening again.

“We have the technical solutions and have identified regulation, from farming subsidies to water company regulation, which could be tweaked to keep more water on the land to help wildlife and farmers. Ultimately it will benefit all of us as consumers.”

One solution being proposed is to create lots of small wetland areas to capture rainwater when it does fall. By slowing the flow of water off the land these allow more water to percolate into soils and aquifers.

The added benefit is that they prevent soil, nutrients and other pollutants from being washed into our rivers, which in turn reduces the costs of water treatment.

Mr Shore added: “we’re struggling to keep our wetlands wet in winter which is virtually unheard of. The knock on effect will be on the birds breeding in spring, so it is easy to see how quickly this can escalate. What we are proposing are small but sensible changes, which bring very tangible benefits for all of us.”

Rain has generally fallen in short, heavy bursts and run straight off the dry, compacted land and very quickly ended up in the sea.

This is already raising the threat of flooding at the same time as drought. Climate change is predicted to bring heavier and less frequent rain making this a more common occurrence.

Weatherquest forecaster Chris Bell said that while average rainfall had been recorded at its Wattisham weather station during December and January, it was still not enough to compensate for the shortfall last year.

An Environment Agency (EA) spokesman said that since the beginning of January, Essex has recorded average rainfall whereas across the county, Suffolk had only had 81% of the long term average.

He said: “Our forecasts suggest that we needed in excess of 120% of long term average rainfall every month from last December until next spring to bring the rivers and groundwater levels back to normal.
“Without the rainfall we will be facing a serious situation come next spring and summer. This is why we are encouraging the general public, industry and agriculture to save water now to try to reduce the impact of next year.”

The EA is concerned that the continuing dry weather, reduced river flows and lower water levels could affect wildlife, including fish and plant life that live in and around our rivers and lakes.

The spokesman added: “We are keeping a check on this situation and will do what we can to alleviate such problems.”