As of: February 16, 2024, 3:18 p.m
Comments
Press
Split
There is drought in large parts of Spain.
Catalonia is particularly affected, here the Vilanova de Sau reservoir.
© Emilio Morenatti/dpa
There is drought in many parts of Spain; like Andalusia, Catalonia has declared a state of emergency and is restricting water consumption.
The Valencia region seems to be getting off lightly - but here too the situation is worrying.
Barcelona/Valencia - There has been drought in large parts of Spain for months.
Andalusia is stranded and may have to be supplied with water from ships in the summer. The state government of Catalonia declared a state of emergency on Thursday, February 1st due to the extreme drought and is now restricting consumption for six million citizens in 202 cities and municipalities drastically, including not only Barcelona, but also Tarragona, the northern neighboring province of Castellón in the north of the Valencia region.
Valencia spared from drought in Spain - situation still “worrying”
The Valencia region itself seems to have miraculously been spared from the drought in Spain, reports costanachrichten.com.
In any case, the state government is currently not planning any restrictions on water consumption - on the premise that the rain will come as usual in spring.
This means that “normal” high-season operations can take place in summer.
But Valencia is by no means an oasis in the drought-ridden desert.
In contrast to other regions in Spain, Valencia can rely on a water reservoir that the region itself does not have, but is brought to it via the Tajo-Segura Canal.
Nevertheless, Valencia's Environment Minister Salomé Pradas Ten (PP) classifies the water supply to the growing areas in the province of Alicante in the Segura catchment area as "worrying" and is already warning the central government in Madrid not to send less water from Castile-La Mancha to Valencia.
Drought in Spain: Agriculture in Valencia is clearly feeling the effects of ongoing drought
The complaints in the region in the east of Spain are still at a high level, because the reservoirs in the Valencia region have reached 39 percent of their capacity and are “only” six points below the average value, the level in the drought emergency area in Catalonia On the other hand, it is 16 percent, in Andalusia an average of just over 22 percent.
Water consumption is therefore restricted in many communities on the Costa del Sol; Andalusia recently declared a drought emergency.
The water shortage is already making itself felt in the growing areas of the Valencia region.
In the La Ribera district south of the state capital Valencia, the farmers' association La Unió de Llauradors has recorded numerous torn oranges - a sign of water shortage at this time of year.
The last time it rained heavily in the Ribera area was in September, and the orange trees are suffering from drought.
An additional problem for Spain's farmers, who now also want to join the farmers' protests in Europe.
No restrictions planned: Valencia still has water
In addition, tangerines and oranges from Valencia are smaller and, according to the association, have lost ten percent of their size.
A phenomenon that Secretary General Carles Peris has never experienced in the south of Valencia.
“We are worried about the coming harvests.
The water reserves are at their lowest level in ten years.” Antonio Miguel Álvaro from the Asaja farmers’ association wanted to rely on grain and invested around 20,000 euros in seeds.
He can hardly harvest any of it, the drought has punished him with ears that are far too puny, and he loses the wheat harvest.
“If there was some rain, I might be able to save something, but at best it would be a poor harvest,” he says.
Anyone who practices dry farming has bad luck.
And: With the drought, livestock feed is also becoming scarce and expensive, which in turn is reflected in higher prices for consumers.
My news
Man helps give birth on sidewalk - baby's mother thanks him in a special wayread
Caught red-handed in the cowshed: farmer's wife beats her husband with a metal-rubber scrubber in front of the children
Silent widespread disease: More and more people in Germany are being diagnosed with endometriosis
Largest mass migration of all time: Hundreds of millions of Chinese are on the moveread
Stone avalanche thunders onto the Brenner Road in South Tyrol and causes traffic jams
Rockfalls in Italy: Search for missing people after rock falls - roads buried at a popular lake and in Trentino read
But the drought has not yet arrived in Valencia, no one has yet turned off the taps for the people of Valencia, green areas can be irrigated differently than in other parts of Spain and municipalities do not have to fear for the survival of their trees as in Catalonia.
In the emergency areas near our northern neighbor Catalonia, farmers have to reduce irrigation by 80 percent and businesses and industry by 25 percent.
Citizens are not allowed to use more than 200 liters of water per day, which sounds like a lot, but after a five-minute shower, 80 flows down the drain.
By the way, a guest in a five-star hotel uses an average of 545 liters because of the jacuzzi and bathrooms, which they are allowed to continue doing.
However, Barcelona is now appealing to tourists' sense of responsibility.