Overview
- The Oficina Técnica da Seca formally declared the Galicia‑Costa demarcation in a state of prolonged drought on Thursday, October 15, 2026, placing 123 municipalities either in alerta or prealerta.
- Regional reservoirs used for drinking water stand at about 44.7% capacity, which is roughly 14 percentage points lower than the same time last year and signals significantly reduced storage for supply.
- The declaration does not trigger automatic, region‑wide consumption bans and leaves any specific limits to the shortage assessment of each local supply system.
- Authorities may temporarily lower legally defined ecological flows—known as caudales ecológicos, the minimum river flows set to protect aquatic life—when the hydrological plan and environmental safeguards justify it.
- Alerts are concentrated in river systems such as the Lérez, Anllóns and Baiona while the Río Grande system in Camariñas was moved out of prealerta, and residents should expect targeted measures such as bans on street washing, pool filling or garden irrigation where individual systems show critical shortages.