---
title: "More than 10,000 small rivers have irreversibly disappeared in Ukraine: where water is at a historic low"
description: "According to the head of the Cherkasy hydrometeorological center, severe low-water conditions are observed on most of Ukraine's rivers, having been building up since May. On certain sections the riverbeds are drying up, and water flow is falling below ecological norms."
date: 2026-09-16T15:10:01.000Z
lang: en
url: https://xab.info/en/posts/ukraine-rivers-severe-low-water-2026
tags: [ukraine, water-crisis, drought, rivers, environment, hydrology]
publisher: "XAB.info"
---

# More than 10,000 small rivers have irreversibly disappeared in Ukraine: where water is at a historic low

![Dried-up bed of a small river in Ukraine: shallow water, sandy shallows and riverside houses against a backdrop of record-low water levels](https://xab.info/media/2026/09/17/malovodye-na-rekakh-ukrainy-2026/malovodye-na-rekakh-ukrainy-2026-1.webp)

## 🎯 Key Points

- In 2026, severe low-water conditions are observed on most of Ukraine's rivers, having been building up since May.
- According to the head of the Cherkasy hydrometeorological center, more than 10,000 small rivers have irreversibly disappeared in Ukraine.
- On certain stretches of the Serebryanka River, the drying up of the riverbed is persisting.
- On the Supiy River the water level is one of the lowest over the entire observation period, and on the Ros River the flow is below ecological values.

In 2026, most of Ukraine's rivers are experiencing severe low-water conditions, which, according to hydrometeorological assessments, had been building up since May. This was stated in a Facebook post by Vitaliy Postrihan, head of the Cherkasy Regional Center for Hydrometeorology and Environmental Monitoring, which RBC-Ukraine cites with reference to the expert. The photos accompanying the story show dried-up riverbeds and extensive sandbars, characteristic of river sections with critically low water levels.

### The scale of the problem: data from European monitoring

The expert emphasized that the issue of shallowing of the main water arteries is increasingly being raised in the media not only in Ukraine but also in a number of other countries, and acknowledged that "there are reasons for it, and the water shortage problem in Ukraine is becoming increasingly acute." Citing analytics from the European Copernicus environmental monitoring and security program, Postrihan stated that the statistics confirm: Ukraine has not been spared from the water problem. According to him, more than 10,000 small rivers have already irreversibly disappeared in the country, and severe low-water conditions are observed on most of the state's rivers.

### Where water is at a historic low

On September 11, 2026, the specialist named the most critical sections. On certain stretches of the Serebryanka River in Cherkasy Oblast, he said, "the drying up of the riverbed is persisting." On the Supiy River, the water level is one of the lowest over the entire observation period. On the Ros River, the water flow has dropped below ecological values — that is, below the threshold necessary to maintain the normal state of the river ecosystem.

### Dynamics: from weak spring flooding to summer drought

The hydrometeorological center links the growing low-water conditions with a complex of factors that emerged as early as May and led to a systemic water deficit by autumn. Earlier, against the backdrop of weak spring flooding and subsequent weather conditions, critical water-level indicators were already recorded in July. Historic anti-records for the Dniester River and a record-low level of a number of reservoirs, where there is not enough water for population needs, were separately noted.

### What this means for the regions

The drying up of riverbeds and the drop in flow below ecological norms mean not only a water shortage for domestic and economic needs but also a direct threat to river ecosystems. For Cherkasy Oblast and other regions with low-water rivers, this may mean additional restrictions on water consumption in the autumn-winter period, when inflow into the riverbeds usually drops even further.

## 🔍 Fact-Check Verification

- [More than 10,000 small rivers have already disappeared in Ukraine: where water is critically short this year](https://www.rbc.ua/ukr/news/ukrayini-vzhe-zniklo-ponad-10-tisyach-malih-1789569819.html) - Единственный предоставленный источник. Подтверждает факт глубокого маловодья на большинстве рек, динамику с мая и конкретные реки (Серебрянка, Супий, Рось). Цифра о 10 тысячах исчезнувших малых рек — заявление эксперта со ссылкой на Copernicus, без независимого пересчёта.

## ❓ FAQ

### Q: When did the growing low-water conditions on Ukraine's rivers begin in 2026?
**A:** According to Vitaliy Postrihan, head of the Cherkasy Regional Hydrometeorological Center, severe low-water conditions had been building up as early as May 2026.

### Q: On which rivers is the situation most critical?
**A:** The expert named certain stretches of the Serebryanka River in Cherkasy Oblast, where the drying up of the riverbed is persisting; the Supiy River, with one of the lowest levels over the entire observation period; and the Ros River, where water flow has dropped below ecological values.

### Q: How many small rivers have disappeared in Ukraine, according to the hydrometeorological center's assessment?
**A:** According to V. Postrihan, citing analytics from the Copernicus program, more than 10,000 small rivers have irreversibly disappeared in Ukraine.