Towards a funding future for hydrological services?

Some national hydrological services have for many years been obliged to seek non‐governmental sources of funding; for others this is a new challenge. This article reviews the experiences of hydrological services which have successfully developed a range of services which they sell on a cost‐covering or commercial basis to other government departments or agencies, or to the private sector. It may not always be possible for hydrological services to compensate for government funding reductions without curtailing their activities, and in other cases government financial rules and objectives may cause difficulties.