Drought, water for agriculture will soon run out across Southern Italy

Increasingly serious drought situation:the only good news is that the aquifers have been little affected, but investments are needed.

• In Sicily the water emergency is full-blown, with water rationing in various areas, but the whole of Southern Italy is in crisis.
• In the Puglia region, the granary of Italy, there is already no more water for agriculture but only for drinking.
• Within three weeks, according to the Anbi, practically the entire south of the country will be in the same situation.

Not just Sicily.If this heat and this lack of rain continues, as it seems, within three weeks the whole of central-southern Italy will no longer have water available for agriculture, but just enough for drinking, washing, cooking.A catastrophic situation, which in some areas is already a reality, such as in the Foggia area.

The water crisis that is affecting Italy seriously risks worsening by the month of August, with many southern regions, but also Abruzzo, which could remain completely dry.THE'national association of land and irrigation water management and protection consortia (Anbi) raises the alarm, highlighting an already dramatic situation that is worsening day by day.

Where water for agriculture is about to end up

The latest report from the Anbi Observatory on water resources in fact notes that between 21 and 22 July there were 54 extreme weather events, but heavy rainfall failed to counteract the drought.Also because, as we know, the extreme event, which follows a long period of drought, is unlikely to allow dry soil to absorb rainwater correctly.In particular, theinvaded by Occhito, between Molise and Puglia, lost over 15 million cubic meters of water in eight days.Currently, the dam on the Fortore river holds back only 77 million cubic meters, destined almost exclusively for drinking use.Francesco Vincenzi, President of Anbi, warns:“There is a real risk of seeing the Foggia plain dried up, as well as large portions of the Salento area.”

In Abruzzo, the situation is equally critical.The Penne basin it is now dried up and there'Chiauci invasion will run out by mid-August, compromising both agriculture and Trigno plain and civil use in the coastal municipalities of San Salvo and Vasto.Even the springs at the foot of the Maiella, which historically have never suffered from lack of water, are recording historic minimum flows.

Drought in Sicily, but also in Sardinia

There Sicily it is the region we know the most about, with entire lakes disappeared due to drought, and there's no need to even repeat ourselves:the island is experiencing one of the worst years from a water point of view, with a rainfall deficit that exceeds 60 percent on an annual basis.The regional reservoirs hold only 267 million cubic meters of water, but only 122 million are actually usable.Many basins are already dry and the province of Caltanissetta and other areas of the island are undergoing water rationing, with serious repercussions on agriculture.Even the Sardinia but it's in crisis:The island's dams hold back only 57 percent of the authorized volume, with irrigation already interrupted in several areas.In Calabria, Basilicata and Campania, water reserves are at historic lows and reductions in water supply are affecting both agricultural and civil use.

In Central Italy, the situation is not much better.In Lazio, lake levels continue to fall, while in Umbria the Lake Trasimeno it's getting drier and drier.The Marche and Tuscany see significant drops in the levels of their rivers and basins.Northern Italy presents a contrasting picture.After the extreme drought of 2022 and a dry winter in 2023, this year has seen water recovery.The big ones lakes such as Maggiore and Sebino record filling levels above average and the Po river maintains flow rates above monthly averages.However, there are warning signs here too, with reductions in the flows of some rivers.

“Today's photograph of water Italy – he concludes Massimo Gargano, General Director of Anbi – it is that of a North abundant in water and a Central-South burned by drought, where important economic assets such as agriculture and tourism are at risk.There must be awareness, at every level, that the climate has changed and that a new model for the territory is needed, where resilience can only be accompanied by maintenance, infrastructure and innovation".

Luckily the aquifers resist

The water crisis in Italy is reaching worrying levels, and if urgent measures are not taken, the consequences for agriculture and local communities could be disastrous in the near future.Fortunately, amidst this disaster, there is some good news:groundwater, the so-called aquifers, the most strategic and significant Italian water resource which guarantees 84 percent of drinking water needs, as well as a significant part of agricultural and industrial needs, "are suffering less from the decrease in rainfall and high temperatures compared to surface water resources.Second Daniela Ducci, professor of Geology at the Federico II University of Naples, and advisor to the National Board of the Italian Geological Society, the aquifers "remain a natural reservoir to "store" the rainwater that infiltrates, also guaranteeing excellent quality, as they are well protected by the rocks that contain them.

To the resource which is renewed every year, there are added substantial deep reserves of water which are not completely renewable, but which could be used in "critical" periods, as emergency sources, to be replenished in the rainiest periods".Easy said, busier to do:being able to use that reserve of water in fact presupposes theidentification of rocks tank, the drafting of hydrogeological balance sheets, there sustainability of withdrawals and water quality assessment:this is why research and investments in a real anti-drought plan remain fundamental elements.