# Water shortages **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 26, 2006, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/water-shortages/377997 "2006-10-26T16:26:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 3\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Yellow\_Rights](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Yellow\_Rights](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yellow_Rights)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2006, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/water-shortages/377997/1 "2006-10-26T16:26:24Z")
In the UK, you often hear of watershortages in the summer and “Hosepipe bans.” How does a country like Spain not have water shortages? ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2006, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/water-shortages/377997/2 "2006-10-26T16:44:18Z")
Who says they don’t? Googling “drought spain” brings up a number of articles. BBC: [Iberian misery as drought bites](http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4086864.stm) Planet Ark: [Spain Says Drought Could Last Years](http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/31814/newsDate/28-Jul-2005/story.htm) USA Today: [Spain’s drought worst on record, no relief seen](http://www.usatoday.com/weather/climate/2005-09-07-spain-drought_x.htm) etc. ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2006, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/water-shortages/377997/3 "2006-10-26T17:41:56Z")
I’m not surprised at all that they have droughts. I live in Southern California, and when I saw Spain I was surprised at how much the flora resembled that of L.A. County. Not quite that dry, of course, but still a lot drier than places like Germany or Holland.