Water scarcity alert issued for parts of the Highlands

Scotland's environment agency has issued its first alert level warning of this year about water scarcity.

It follows very low river flows being recorded around Loch Maree in Wester Ross.

The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa) said the availability of water in the area had been affected by warm, dry weather.

It has urged businesses that use water from streams and rivers to reduce what they take.

Hydro-electric schemes, distilleries, farms and golf courses are among the types of businesses that abstract water.

The dry conditions have also prompted the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service to issue a warning of a very high wildfire risk in large parts of Scotland until Monday.

Sepa categorises water scarcity in four levels - early warning, alert, moderate scarcity and significant scarcity.

Areas in southern and central Scotland, and the majority of the north including the Western Isles, are at early warning level.

Head of water and planning, Nathan Critchlow-Watton, said: "With very little to no rainfall forecast across Scotland in the coming days, we expect ground conditions to continue getting drier and river flows to decrease or remain low.

"The next few weeks and months are a crucial time of year for water demand and we're urging abstractors to manage water wisely, minimising the need for restrictions to be imposed by Sepa."