Overview
- Rijkswaterstaat said Tuesday that inflow at Lobith has fallen to about 637 cubic metres per second, a record low that prompted its weekly drought monitor to label the situation 'exceptional'.
- The normal Lobith gauge failed at current depths and a temporary measuring point was installed to track the river as authorities increase monitoring.
- Shipping is already constrained because vessels must load less cargo to avoid grounding, and Rijkswaterstaat warned it may impose temporary one-way traffic if discharge nears or falls below roughly 600 m³/s.
- ING economist Carsten Brzeski and comparisons with the 2018 drought indicate this low flow could shave at least 0.3 percentage point off German GDP by reducing inland-barge freight and slowing industry deliveries.
- Groundwater across the basin is low to extremely low and 2026 ranks among the driest 5% of years since 1906; forecasters say a modest rise toward about 700 m³/s by around 10 August is possible but depends on unlikely sustained rain.