Hungary experiences worst drought in 126 years in 2026

Hungary is experiencing its most severe drought in 126 years in 2026, recording its driest summer since 1901. The crisis has brought the Danube to record lows, disrupting shipping and cooling at the Paks nuclear plant. In response, the government has shifted policies toward natural water retention, while grassroots "Water Guardians" build manual dams. The agricultural damage is severe, with half the country facing agricultural drought, prompting Hungary's central bank to project a 0.4 percentage point cut to 2026 economic growth.

Drought severity and meteorological data

• ▪Between April 1 and September 2, 2026, at least 30 percent of Hungary's territory experienced moderate or more severe drought conditions for nearly 84 percent of the period.
• ▪By late June 2026, almost the entire territory of Hungary experienced a soil moisture deficit of more than 100 millimetres in the top metre of soil.
• ▪According to HungaroMet, Hungary experienced its most severe drought in 126 years in 2026, recording its driest summer since 1901 and second hottest, with average summer rainfall at 74.1 millimetres, 36 percent of the 1991 to 2020 mean.
• ▪By the end of August 2026, agricultural drought had reached severe levels across half of Hungary's territory.

Impact on rivers and infrastructure

• ▪The 2026 drought in Hungary brought river levels to record lows, disrupting cargo barges and cooling water flows from the Danube for the Paks nuclear plant.
• ▪Borbala Kanizsay, a volunteer in the Ladany valley, reported that the creek near her house ran dry in May 2026 for the first time she could remember.

Agricultural shift from maize to sunflowers

• ▪Zoltan Kende of MATE University stated that 2026 was the first year the harvested area of maize in Hungary fell below the area planted with sunflowers.
• ▪Many Hungarian farmers have abandoned maize for alternative crops due to dry conditions, while researchers work on drought-resistant varieties.

Water retention efforts in Ladany valley

• ▪Forest engineer Bence Bardos led a team building terraces in the Ladany valley to help reverse water runoff.
• ▪Volunteers with the grassroots Water Guardians Movement built log terraces and man-made beaver dams in the Ladany valley to retain rainwater and pool stream water.

Policy and systemic water management

• ▪Central European University professor Diana Ürge-Vorsatz stated that decades of river regulation and wetland drainage to open agricultural land must be reversed to slow river flows and retain groundwater.
• ▪The Hungarian government announced a strategy in August 2026 prioritizing natural water retention methods, including the deliberate flooding of some farmland.

Groundwater decline and regional context

• ▪A World Meteorological Organization report indicated that Central and Eastern Europe are among the regions most affected by falling groundwater levels and shortages.
• ▪Soil moisture in the affected European regions was already far below normal levels in 2025 before deteriorating further in 2026.
• ▪Prior to the 2026 drought, estimates placed the average groundwater level in Hungary at 1.4 to 1.7 metres below the ideal level.
• ▪Forest engineer Bence Bardos stated that farm wells have practically run dry due to climate change and the special geography of the Carpathian basin.