North East water situation: February 2025 summary
Updated 12 March 2025
Applies to England
© Crown copyright 2025
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1. Summary
Overall February was a dry month with rainfall totals classed as below average. Monthly mean river flows decreased this month at all indicator sites and fall within the normal, below normal and notably low ranges. Groundwater levels vary across the area and remain above normal due to the high rainfall recorded in previous months. Soil moisture deficit (SMD) data still shows wet soils across the area. Reservoir stocks in the area have seen only small changes this month and remain healthy for the time of year.
2. Rainfall
Monthly rainfall totals were classed as below the long term average (LTA) for all catchments, with totals falling within normal or below normal categories. Monthly totals ranged from 53% of the LTA in the Tweed catchment to 73% of the LTA in the Wear catchment.
Analysis of the daily rainfall shows very little rainfall was recorded in the first week of February. The area recorded small rainfall totals on 10 February. The last week of February saw some higher rainfall totals with more notable amounts recorded in the Wear and Seaham catchments, whilst in the north of the area lower totals were observed.
The cumulative 3-month rainfall totals are in the below normal range for the Tweed and Tyne catchments and normal range for the rest of the area. The cumulative 12-month rainfall totals are in the normal range for all catchments.
3. Soil moisture deficit and recharge
Soils are classed as wet with less than 10mm of soil moisture deficit across the area.
4. River flows
Monthly mean river flows have decreased this month at all indicator sites and fall within the normal, below normal or notably low ranges. Monthly mean flows ranged from 44% of the LTA at Hartford Bridge on the River Blyth to 83% of the LTA at Rutherford Bridge on the River Greta.
Analysis of the daily mean flows shows that flows were in the normal or below normal ranges at the start of the month. Daily mean flows decreased at all indicator sites following a dry start to the month, and increased slightly following a period of rainfall on 10 February. Mean daily flows slowly decreased for the second half of the month and then increased rapidly on 23 February following a period of rainfall with higher flows recorded in the Wear and Seaham catchments. Flows decreased towards the end of the month with indicator sites falling within the normal, below normal or notably low ranges by the end of the month.
5. Groundwater levels
Groundwater levels vary across the area. Levels in West Hall Farm borehole in the Wear Magnesian Limestone remain in the notably high range. The level in Aycliffe NRA2 in the Skerne Magnesian Limestone increased slightly and falls within the above normal range. Royalty Observation is classed as normal in the Fell Sandstone. Red Lion in the Skerne Magnesian Limestone and Town Law in the Fell Sandstone fall within the normal ranges for February.
6. Reservoir stocks
Reservoirs stocks vary across the area. Kielder, Derwent, the Durham group and the Lune and Balder group have seen small increases in stocks this month, whilst the North Tynedale group and Cow Green reservoir have seen a decrease. Reservoirs in the Durham group are at 100% full. Overall, reservoir stocks remain healthy for the time of year.
| Reservoir or reservoir group | Percentage of current stocks | Percentage of previous month stocks |
|---|---|---|
| Kielder | 87.8 | 87 |
| North Tynedale group | 77.8 | 81 |
| Derwent | 96.2 | 96 |
| Durham group | 100 | 99.6 |
| Lune and Balder group | 98.1 | 97.8 |
| Cow Green | 95.9 | 97.4 |
Author: Environment Agency, hydrology.northeast@environment-agency.gov.uk
All data are provisional and may be subject to revision. The views expressed in this document are not necessarily those of the Environment Agency. Its officers, servants or agents accept no liability for any loss or damage arising from the interpretation or use of the information, or reliance upon views contained in this report.