Europe is currently in the throes of a drought that appears to be the worst in at least 500 years, according to a preliminary analysis by experts from the European Union’s Joint Research Center.
Some 64% of the EU is under a drought warning or alert, according to a new report from the European Drought Observatory. The bloc’s experts said they expect the warm and dry conditions, which are fueling wildfires and reducing crop outputs, to continue in parts of the region until November.
“The combination of a severe drought and heat waves has created an unprecedented stress on water levels in the entire EU,” Mariya Gabriel, the bloc’s commissioner for research, said Tuesday in a statement. “Climate change is undoubtedly more noticeably every year.”
Several EU crops are being hit particularly hard, with the yield forecasts for grain 16% below the five-year average, and 15% below it for maize, according to the latest data.
The effects of climate change are becoming more evident every year.
We work hand in hand with scientists to map and study the current crisis with the best technology available, from space and ground.
#EUGreenDeal
pic.twitter.com/tHVBDQxHvq
— European Commission (@EU_Commission) Aug. 23, 2022
Photograph: Ruins of the Sant Roma church, exposed by low water levels in the Sau reservoir following drought, in Vilanova de Sau, Spain, on Saturday, Aug. 20, 2022. In the midst of an arid summer that set heat records across Europe, the continent’s rivers are evaporating. Photo credit: Angel Garcia/Bloomberg
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