Southern Europe braces for summer drought due to climate change

From Southern Europe to Argentina

As climate change makes the region hotter and drier, successive years of drought have depleted groundwater reserves. Soils in Spain and southern France are drying out. Low river and reservoir levels are threatening hydroelectric power generation this summer.

Scientists have warned that Europe is bracing for another brutal summer, after experiencing its hottest year on record last year, which scientists say was the worst in at least 500 years.

A view shows the ground of the Rialb reservoir as drinking water supplies have fallen to their lowest levels since 1990 due to severe drought, in the village of Bassella, Spain, May 6, 2023. Photo: REUTERS

The situation is most dire in Spain. “The drought will get worse this summer,” said Jorge Olcina, professor of geostatistics at the University of Alicante in Spain.

Seeking emergency EU support, Spanish Agriculture Minister Luis Planas warned that "this drought situation is so serious that its consequences cannot be solved with national funds alone," according to an April 24 letter to the European Commission (EC) seen by Reuters.

It’s not just southern European countries that are facing severe water shortages this year. The Horn of Africa is experiencing its worst drought in decades, while a historic drought in Argentina has damaged soybean and corn crops. Likewise, record heat waves are hitting China and Southeast Asia.

Climate change trends

More frequent and severe droughts in the Mediterranean region – where average temperatures are now 1.5C higher than 150 years ago – fit with how scientists predict climate change will impact the region.

“In terms of the climate change signal, it fits very well with what we are predicting,” said Hayley Fowler, Professor of Climate Change Impacts at Newcastle University.

Despite these long-standing predictions, preparedness has lagged. Many farming regions have yet to adopt water-saving practices like precision irrigation or switch to more drought-tolerant crops like sunflowers.

“ Governments have been slow. So have companies,” said Robert Vautard, a climate scientist and director of France’s Pierre-Simon Laplace Institute. “Some companies aren’t even thinking about changing their consumption patterns, they’re just trying to find some magical technology that can bring water.”

Farming groups have reported crop losses of up to 80%, with cereals and oilseeds among those affected.

"This is the worst crop failure in decades. It's worse than last year," Pekka Pesonen, head of European farming group Copa-Cogeca, said of Spain.

Mai Van (according to Reuters)

Source: https://www.congluan.vn/the-gioi-chuan-bi-doi-pho-voi-mot-mua-he-han-han-do-bien-doi-khi-hau-post248156.html