Moldova and Ukraine reduce Dniester water releases to 60 cubic metres per second as hydrological crisis deepens

The Republic of Moldova and Ukraine continue their joint response to the deepening hydrological crisis in the Dniester River Basin. On 28 August 2026, the Commission on Sustainable Use and Protection of the Dniester River Basin (Dniester Commission) held its sixth extraordinary meeting of the year, in a virtual format, to review the latest hydrological data and forecasts, and to set a new water release regime for the Dniester hydropower complex. 

The situation has deteriorated further since the Commission's last meeting on 11 August: after more than half a year of well-below-normal rainfall, the Dniester is now at its lowest level in the entire period of observation. On 27 August, inflow to the Dniester Reservoir fell to just 31 cubic metres per second — around 13 per cent of the normal level and the lowest inflow ever recorded during the reservoir's operating period. This means that the reservoir has been drawing down its stored water reserves for several months to maintain downstream releases. No significant rainfall is forecast for the coming two weeks, and Ukrainian specialists estimate that restoring the reservoir to its normal operating level could take up to two years, in the worst-case scenario.

The consequences are already tangible in both countries. In Ukraine, the low reservoir level has disrupted the operation of water intakes serving Khotyn, Novodnistrovsk, Chernivtsi and Kamianets-Podilskyi, putting some 600,000 people at risk of interruptions to their drinking-water supply. Water utilities are extending intake pipes and lowering pumping equipment to keep water flowing, and most non-essential water use in the basin has already been restricted. In Moldova, the Chișinău water intake continues to operate thanks to temporary measures — dredging, a sandbag barrier, and mobile pumping stations — but these offer no guarantee should the flow fall further. A reconstruction of the intake is being prepared. The Odesa water intake is not affected at present.

Ukrhydroenergo warned that the reservoir is approaching the level at which the turbine equipment of the hydropower complex can no longer operate safely, and that below the 110-metre mark no water can be released downstream at all. Should current conditions persist, that point could be reached by the end of November. Having reviewed the data and forecasts, the Commission agreed to reduce the release of water from the Dniester hydropower complex from 75 to 60 cubic metres per second, effective from 28 August, for a period of two weeks.

The two sides also noted the need to develop rules for operating the reservoir in periods of extreme low water. The Commission will review the release regime in two weeks' time — or earlier, should the situation deteriorate further. The current response exemplifies how an effective river basin commission can address transboundary water management challenges through the use of shared data, clear legal frameworks and joint decision-making among riparian countries. This approach lies at the core of the OSCE’s role in supporting and strengthening co-operative frameworks to address shared challenges to security and stability. 

The meeting was organized with the support of the project “Advancing transboundary co-operation and Integrated Water Resources Management in the Dniester River Basin through implementation of the Strategic Action Programme”. The project is funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF), with the UNDP serving as the implementing agency, the OSCE as the executing agency, and support from the UNECE.