In the summer of 2026, water stopped being an abstract sustainability issue in parts of Central and South-Eastern Europe. It became an operational problem.
Low Danube water levels disrupted transport and affected electricity production. In Romania, both units at the Cernavodă nuclear power plant were shut down in controlled procedures because of hydrological conditions. Bulgaria’s Kozloduy nuclear power plant also announced a 12% capacity reduction at one reactor due to critically low river levels. Meanwhile, Austrian energy company Verbund reported hydropower generation 32% below the long-term average in the first half of 2026. These cases show how water conditions can affect energy production, transport and business continuity.
The scale of the challenge is reflected in WWF Central and Eastern Europe’s report, Business Water Risks and Readiness in Central and Eastern Europe, developed with EY denkstatt Austria and published on 22 October 2026. The survey covered 115 companies in Bulgaria, Czechia, Hungary, Romania, Slovakia and Ukraine. Some 52% reported at least one significant negative water-related impact over the previous five years, while 58% expect water risks to affect their business moderately or significantly over the next five years. Yet 53% had no dedicated water strategy, and only 23% had assessed risks across their supply chains. The results are indicative, not statistically representative. Read the WWF CEE report announcement.
What could this mean over the next five to ten years? For food producers, repeated droughts could reduce harvests, increase ingredient prices and disrupt supply. Manufacturers relying on river water for cooling or processing could face restrictions during periods of low flow or high temperatures. Businesses transporting goods along rivers could experience delays, reduced cargo loads and higher costs as they switch to road or rail. And even companies with water-efficient facilities may be vulnerable if their suppliers operate in water-stressed areas. Flooding creates the opposite but equally serious risk: damage to factories, warehouses, roads and power infrastructure. These are scenarios, not inevitable outcomes, but they are risks companies can assess and prepare for now.
This is where communication has a practical role to play. Internally, communicators can help bring water risk beyond sustainability teams and into decisions made by leadership, finance, procurement and operations. What happens if a key supplier cannot deliver for two weeks? Which sites are exposed? Who needs to be informed if water restrictions affect production? Externally, clear communication can help employees, customers, investors, suppliers and local communities understand the risks, the measures being taken and the gaps that remain. It can also give visibility to credible solutions, from water reuse and efficiency to better supplier monitoring and cooperation with local communities.
Water risk is no longer a distant environmental concern, it is a business reality. Companies need to prepare for its impact, and communicators need to make sure it is understood before disruption hits. Our role is not just to talk about water, but to help businesses and society recognise the risks, ask harder questions and turn awareness into action.
Photo Credit: www.gizmodo.com
References:
WWF CEE report announcement
Romanian nuclear regulator
Reuters reporting on Bulgaria’s Kozloduy plant