A river once ran through it. White dust and thousands of dead fish now cover the wide trench that winds among rows of trees in what was the Tille River in the village of Lux in France's Burgundy region. An unprecedented drought is afflicting nearly half of Europe, from dry and cracked reservoirs in Spain to falling water levels on major arteries like the Danube, Rhine, and Po. It harms farm economies, forces water restrictions, causes wildfires, and endangers aquatic species.
There has been no significant rainfall in Western, Central, and Southern Europe for nearly two months. And the dry spell is expected to continue, with experts predicting the worst drought in 500 years. Hotter temperatures increase evaporation, thirsty plants absorb more moisture, and reduced snowfall in the winter limits supplies of fresh water available for irrigation in the summer. Drought conditions have also been reported in East Africa, the western United States, and northern Mexico, making Europe not alone in the crisis.
Jean-Philippe Couasne, chief technician at the local Federation for Fishing and Protection of the Aquatic Environment, listed the species of fish that had died in the Tille as he walked in the 15-meter-wide (50-foot-wide) riverbed in Lux. He described the situation as "heartbreaking." "On average, approximately 8,000 litres (approximately 2,100 gallons) per second flow and now, zero litres."
Some trout and other freshwater species can take refuge in pools via fish ladders in some areas upstream. However, such systems are not universally available. The river would be dry if it did not rain "will continue to be emptied And, yes, all fish will perish.. They are trapped upstream and downstream, there is no water coming in, so the oxygen level will continue to fall as the (water) volume decreases "Couasne explained. "These are species that will gradually become extinct."
According to Jean-Pierre Sonvico, the federation's regional head, diverting the fish to other rivers will not help because those rivers will also be affected, resulting in overcrowding and more deaths. "Yes, it's dramatic, but what else can we do? Nothing, "He stated. "We're waiting for storms to bring rain, but storms are very local, so we can't count on it.
This week, the European Commission's Joint Research Center warned that drought conditions will worsen, potentially affecting 47% of the continent. According to Andrea Toreti, a senior researcher at the European Drought Observatory, the 2018 drought was so severe that there had been no similar events in the previous 500 years, "but this year, I think, it is really worse." "We still see a very high risk of dry conditions over Western and Central Europe, as well as the United Kingdom," Toreti said for the next three months.
According to meteorologist Peter Hoffmann of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research near Berlin, the current situation is the result of long periods of dry weather caused by changes in global weather systems. "It's just that we feel it the most in the summer," he explained. "However, the drought worsens throughout the year." Climate change has reduced temperature differences between regions, reducing the forces that drive the jet stream, which normally brings wet Atlantic weather to Europe, according to him.
A weaker or unstable jet stream can bring unusually hot air from North Africa to Europe, resulting in prolonged periods of heat. The polar vortex of cold air from the Arctic can also cause freezing conditions far south of where it would normally reach. According to Hoffmann, recent observations have all been at the upper end of what existing climate models predicted. Drought has forced some European countries to impose water restrictions, and shipping on the Rhine and Danube is jeopardised. In the coming days, the Rhine could reach critical low levels, making transportation of goods - including coal and gasoline - increasingly difficult. Serbian authorities have begun dredging sand on the Danube to deepen the waterway and keep vessels moving smoothly.
In neighbouring Hungary, large sections of popular Lake Velence near Budapest have dried out, beaching small boats. Aeration and water circulation equipment have been installed to protect wildlife, but water quality has deteriorated to the point where swimming has been prohibited on weekends at one beach.
Southern England was also affected by the drought, with only 10% of its average rainfall in July. Firefighters are battling an unprecedented number of grass fires, and lawn watering has been prohibited in several areas. England's chalk streams, which allow underground springs to bubble up through the spongy layer of rock, are drying up, threatening aquatic wildlife such as kingfishers and trout, according to the Rivers Trust charity.
Even in countries like Spain and Portugal, which are accustomed to long periods without rain, the effects have been severe. Some avocado farmers in the Spanish region of Andalucia have had to sacrifice hundreds of trees to save others from wilting as the Vinuela reservoir in Malaga province dropped to only 13% capacity, down 55% from a year ago. In areas where ponds and streams have dried up, some European farmers are using tap water for their livestock, using up to 100 litres (26 gallons) per cow per day.
The grass has turned yellow-brown in normally green Burgundy, home to the source of Paris' Seine River, and tractors churn up massive clouds of dust. Baptiste Colson, who owns dairy cows and grows feed crops in the village of Moloy, said the drought is causing his animals to suffer, with the quality and quantity of milk decreasing.
According to S&P Global Commodity Insights, EU corn production is expected to be 12.5 million tonnes lower than last year, and sunflower production is expected to be 1.6 million tonnes lower. Colson anticipates a 30% drop in corn yield, which will be a major issue for feeding his cows. "We know we'll have to buy food... to keep the cows producing milk," he explained. "The cost will be high from an economic standpoint."
