Space city weather9/3/2023 Gomis has been working on experiments to increase the efficiency of irrigation systems used by farmers, including by using technology such as sensors to evaluate the precise amount of water crops need. Without significant rain “we will suffer a bad drought this summer,” he told CNN. “We are now in a very dramatic situation,” said Joan Girona Gomis, a scientist at the Institute of Agrifood Research and Technology, a research organization owned by the Catalonian government. Davide Bonaldo/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty ImagesĪs the summer approaches, and the hope of heavy spring rains fade, many are sounding the alarm on what might be in store for Spain. Spain has entered a period of chronic drought. Beer, yes, but no water,” he joked.ĭry and almost empty Ter River is seen at the Sau Reservoir. It just won’t rain, Cogdony said, looking up at the sky. The situation has been going on for more than a year, said Juan Cogdony, a resident of the village. People have been asked to save water by having quick showers, being careful when washing dishes and not filling their pools. The village of Castellcir, around 30 miles north of Barcelona, is one of many in Catalonia that have been relying on water brought in on trucks. Water scarcity is not just affecting farmers, but also drinking water. In April, Spain requested emergency funding from the European Union to help farmers cope with the impacts of the drought. Beekeepers are facing a third consecutive season without a harvest thanks to water shortages, according to COAG. “These agro-climatic conditions are leading to an agricultural disaster,” he said.Ī lack of vegetation is also preventing bees from making honey. Losses are also expected for orchards, vineyards, olive oil production and vegetable farming, Serge Zaka, an agrometeorologist, told CNN. Livestock farming is at risk as farmers need pasture to feed their animals. That’s an area bigger than the state of Maryland. It’s a story which tracks across the country’s agricultural heartlands.ĭrought affects 60% of Spain’s countryside, and has destroyed crops across 3.5 million hectares (8.6 million acres), according to the Coordinator of Farmers’ and Ranchers’ Organizations (COAG). The Sau Reservoir in Spain dropped to 7% of its capacity in April. “If it does not rain in May it will be a disaster,” he said. The majority of wheat and barley harvests on rainfed land will be lost, and on irrigated land will be cut by half, Costal told CNN. “There is no precedent,” said Martí Costal, head of water at the Young Farmers and Ranchers of Catalonia (JARC). ![]() The lack of water is having a catastrophic impact on farms across the region. Reservoir levels across Catalonia are hovering at around 25%, substantially lower than usual for this time of year. ![]() Its water levels are so low that a medieval village, flooded when the lake was created in the 1960s, has emerged, lending an eerie presence to the sun-baked lakebed.Īuthorities have been forced to siphon out water from the reservoir in an attempt to protect water quality and have had to remove native fish to stop them asphyxiating. Located about 60 miles north of Barcelona, the reservoir is a key drinking water source for the region, but in late April it was only at 7% of capacity. “This is the worst period that we have had for the last 100 years,” Samuel Reyes, director of the Catalan Water Agency, told CNN. “They are typical of Catalonia’s Mediterranean climate,” said Albert Ruhi, a freshwater ecologist at the University of California, Berkeley, who is originally from Catalonia.īut a significant lack of rain and snow have made this one much, much drier, he told CNN. It’s becoming increasingly hard to make ends meet as crops shrivel through lack of water – or cannot be planted at all.ĭroughts are a fact of life in this corner of Spain. The lack of water is starting to feel like an existential crisis for farmers such as Caudevilla and he is worried about the future of his profession. Nothing is going to be harvested,” he said.Ĭaudevilla, who grows maize, sorghum and other crops in Gimenells in Catalonia, has been hit hard by the severe drought which has hammered this part of northeastern Spain. “If the weather does not change it will be zero. Standing in his field of stunted, withered maize, Santi Caudevilla is very worried.
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