With the onset of summer, Europe should expect a new climate crisis – drought
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With the onset of summer Europe to be expected new crisis, climate, – drought, according to the publication Poitico.
The first bells began to ring last year, when the British and French were languishing from historical temperature records. The thermometers soared up, because of the energy crisis, the authorities banned the excessive use of air conditioners and asked citizens to conserve water.
A recent study showed that Europe hit by severe drought since 2018. And since that moment, the countries have not been able to recover. And even the rains promised by weather forecasters, which should pass in the coming weeks, will not become a panacea: yes, the topsoil will be moistened, farmers will breathe a sigh of relief, but now groundwater shortage will remain. It takes a decade with heavy rainfall.
SPAIN
Already now, in April, the main water reservoir of the Spanish Catalonia Sau is on the verge of extinction. In the hope of saving the remaining water, the authorities are harvesting 1.5 tons of fish, including rare species, so that they do not die and do not cause pollution of the entire water supply system of the region.
Already this week in Spain, the temperature record for April was set in the entire history of observation: +39 Celsius.
“The drought will be one of the central political topics in our country in the coming years,” Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez warned. According to Environment Minister Teresa Ribera, water availability in Spain, like in France, could fall by up to 40% by 2050.
The Spanish farmers’ association COAG is sounding the alarm: according to their estimates, this year it is worth saying goodbye to the harvest of cereals in four regions and olives – throughout the country.
ITALY
In Italy, the largest Po river, which flows from Turin to Venice, has actually become shallow. For the first time in 30 years, it has reached an all-time low. The 652-kilometer river is a vital artery of the northern regions of the country. Tourism, agriculture, and the provision of electricity to the regions are tied to it. The water level in Lake Garda has more than halved. A similar situation is observed in the Alpine provinces, where lakes, whose average volume is 100 million liters, now reach a maximum of 42 million liters.
Experts attribute the drop in water levels to unusually dry and warm winters, as well as a lack of snow to feed them.
FRANCE
In the west of France, a whole war broke out between the “greens” and the police. 25,000 activists opposed the construction of 15 reservoirs for farmers. In this region, farmers are most often faced with drought. By pumping groundwater out of the soil, they could use it to irrigate fields during the dry months. But the “greens” felt that the farmers thus appropriated their common property – water, and this is unacceptable, so they should switch to less water-intensive farming methods.
WHAT TO DO?
The European authorities, having survived the devastating consequences of past years, are now trying to somehow prepare for difficult times. Italy has passed a drought law that aims to reduce red tape in relation to water infrastructure, including desalination plants. Spain presented a water management plan.
French President Emmanuel Macron’s new national water management strategy aims to reduce overall water consumption by 10% by the end of the 2020s. According to the plan, each sector will be asked to make proposals to reduce water consumption.
