Residents limit water usage, Spain cries out for thirst: nearly 40% of territory is drought, water shortage, fire | Spain | Drought
According to data released by the Spanish National Water Authority on June 21st local time, 39.9% of Spain's territory is under alert or emergency due to rainfall falling below the average for 36 consecutive months. This means that Spain has officially entered a long-term drought period. Spanish Prime Minister Sanchez stated that drought has become a long-term issue for the country, and discussions around drought will become a core political issue for Spain in the coming years.
The hottest summer in 62 years
According to CCTV News, citing data from the Spanish Meteorological Agency, the average temperature in April this year was 3 degrees Celsius higher than the annual average for the same period, and the average highest temperature for that month was 4.7 degrees Celsius higher than the annual average for the same period. In terms of precipitation, the national average precipitation in Spain in April this year was 14.2 millimeters, only one-fifth of previous years, and the degree of drought and heat reached the highest level in 62 years.
Extreme weather combined with a significant decrease in precipitation has led to a significant decrease in water supply to many reservoirs in Spain. According to the latest data from the Spanish Ministry of Ecology and Transformation, the current reservoir water storage in the country only accounts for 47.4% of the total storage, which is about 19 percentage points lower than the average reservoir water storage in Spain during the same period in the past 10 years. The average water level of reservoirs throughout Spain is only a quarter of the highest water level. In Catalonia, where the drought is most severe, some reservoirs are on the brink of drying up.
Lack of irrigation water, some farms have no harvest
Affected by continuous drought, the water levels of rivers in many parts of Spain continue to decline, land desertification intensifies, and agricultural irrigation is difficult.
The main Spanish farmers and pastoralists union has stated that insufficient precipitation has affected 60% of Spain's agricultural areas, causing "irreversible losses" to over 3.5 million hectares of crops. In major cultivation areas such as Andalusia, Castile, Estremadura, and Murcia, some farms even have no harvest.
In the important agricultural production base of Levante in southeastern Spain, the amount of water used for irrigating farmland in the Tahoe River is continuously decreasing. Data shows that the water volume of the Tahoe River has decreased by 12% and is expected to decrease by another 40% by 2050. During the current summer drought, some channels of the Tahoe River even experience complete water depletion. If the drought continues, the cabbage, lettuce, watermelon, and cantaloupe in the European market may all disappear in winter.
From October 2022 to February 2023, Spanish olive production decreased by 50% year-on-year. As the world's largest producer and exporter of olive oil, the decrease in Spanish olive production directly leads to global supply shortages and price hikes. As of April this year, the price of Spanish olive oil has reached 5.75 euros per kilogram, a year-on-year increase of 47%, setting a record high in 26 years. Meanwhile, extreme high temperatures and water shortages will result in a 25% decrease in Spanish avocado production.
Recently, Spanish Agriculture Minister Pranas stated that Spain has applied for funding from the European Union to provide emergency financial assistance to over 890000 agricultural and livestock producers.
Frequent wildfires damage farmland, making it difficult for residents to access water
Drought has caused damage to the local ecology. Spain has a high vegetation coverage, dry climate conditions, and is prone to fires. The fire season usually starts from the hot climate of June. Under the influence of extreme drought weather, Spain's fire season has started earlier this year. A major wildfire in March destroyed nearly 3000 hectares of land. According to the European Forest Fire Information System, as of now, fires have burned approximately 54000 hectares of land in Spain.
Due to insufficient precipitation, the Catalonia region in northeastern Spain has experienced particularly severe drought. The Ter Lobregat tap water system, which supplies water to most parts of Spain, currently has a capacity of only 27%. Due to the rapid decline in water levels in some areas, the storage capacity of reservoirs is even less than 10%. In response to the extremely severe drought problem, the Catalan government has announced new water restrictions for nearly 6 million people. After the new measures take effect, the daily water consumption of each person shall not exceed 230 liters, including the water consumption for personal use and public services such as street cleaning. The municipal government prohibits water injection into facilities such as fountains. At the same time, agricultural and industrial water use is also forced to be restricted, and the amount of water that must be reduced in agricultural activities has increased from the current 25% to 40%, while industrial water use must be reduced by more than 15%.
According to a previous interview with Xinhua News Agency, Austrian National Meteorological Agency meteorologist Klaus Hasringer stated that there is evidence to suggest that droughts will become more common in the coming years due to the impact of global warming.
