On Monday morning, the deputy director of the Water Management Authority joined our colleagues on RTL Radio to discuss the ongoing drought and potential threats to Luxembourg’s drinking water reserves.

Zwank described the current situation as unprecedented. 2018 was already an extremely dry year, but back then, the low water levels in the country’s creeks and rivers only began showing toward the end of the summer, yet persisted into autumn. A similar process can be expected to unfold this year, explained Zwank.

Despite the current state of affairs, the spokesman for the Water Management Authority ensured that Luxembourg’s drinking water reserves are unaffected by the low water levels. Although people are no longer urged to conserve water, the phase of vigilance might be installed once again when the majority of people return from their summer holidays abroad and construction sites reopen.

Since the drought has been going on for an extended period of time, the soil tends to be dry well into the ground, warned Zwank. This means that in the case of rain, water takes longer to drain, which in return increases the risk of flash floods.