Italy’s farm production is endangered because of drought

The drought and inadequate water infrastructure in Italy are putting a third of the country’s agricultural production in danger, and the situation is only going to become worse over the subsequent years, the country’s Agriculture Minister warned Parliament on Wednesday.

According to the most recent data from official research organizations, Italy lost 19% of its water resources between 1991 and 2020 compared to 1921 to 1950, and future losses of up to 40% are possible in the following decades. Stefano Patuanelli gave this information.

“We are thus witnessing a slow but unrelenting wasting away of water availability in our country.” The lower Chamber of Deputies was informed by Patuanelli.

In response to a protracted drought and accompanying heat wave that has caused the Po River, a vital irrigation artery across a region of north-central Italy that is a significant producer of fruits, vegetables, and grain, to dry up, the government has declared a state of emergency in a number of northern regions.

The drought came after an extremely dry winter that prevented mountains from receiving new snowfall that would have fed rivers and reservoirs in the summer. The melting Marmolada glacier’s cleaving off on July 3 and the accompanying avalanche that killed 11 hikers in northern Trento have been attributed to the combined climatic conditions.

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Such droughts, according to Patuanelli, happen cyclically in Italy, typically every five years, but they are anticipated to occur more frequently and “with ever more devastating consequences.”

The Po River basin, he claimed, is currently the main reason for worry because “the area concerns a third of national agricultural production.”

“We’re talking about the cultivation of fruit, vegetables, tomatoes, and cereals, especially corn and rice,” as well as the farms that raise the animals used to make the legendary prosciutto and Parmesan cheese from the area.

According to the Italian agricultural group Coldiretti, the crisis has already cost Italian farmers approximately 3 billion euros in damages, in addition to skyrocketing energy costs brought on by Russia’s conflict in Ukraine.

While unusual heat and a lack of rain are to blame for the current crisis, Italy is known for its notoriously inefficient water infrastructure. According to the national statistics agency ISTAT, drinking water is lost from distribution networks by 42%, primarily because of aging and poorly maintained pipes.