The Environment Agency has made the announcement this afternoon (July 29), with seven areas of the country affected. Helen Wakeham, director of water at the Environment Agency and chair of the National Drought Group, said: "The hot and dry weather means we are currently using water faster than nature can replenish it." Drought is defined as a lack of water and has no official threshold criteria, but the National Drought Group will assess conditions to decide if one should be declared. Hertfordshire is also currently subject to a hosepipe ban, which began earlier this month and could last all summer. The full list of areas now in drought is: