Italy and France face second year of drought

ROME (AP) — Faced with the possibility of a drought in Italy for the second consecutive year, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni met with ministers on Wednesday to draw up an action plan, joining France and other struggling European countries. with a winter without rain or snow.

Meloni and his ministers have decided to appoint an “extraordinary commissioner with executive powers” to implement the government’s anti-drought plan once it is drawn up. Italy has appointed a similar official for the COVID-19 pandemic.

Experts say the last time Italy had two consecutive drought years was in 1989 and 1990, but they have warned that conditions are more unfavorable today.

Low winter snowfall means too little snowmelt to feed streams and tributaries that flow into the Po River, leaving farmers in Italy’s Emilia-Romagna region fearful of having to abandon traditional crops such as corn and soybeans and plant sunflowers in its place.

Emilia-Romagna is one of the most productive agricultural regions in Italy. The lack of water could also affect the food supply of cows and pigs, whose milk and meat are essential for the production of Parmigiano Reggiano cheese and raw ham.

France has recorded 32 days without rain this winter, the longest winter drought since records began in 1959. Snow levels in the French Alps, Pyrenees and other French mountain ranges are also well below normal for this time of year, according to the National Weather Service.

Because water from melting snow is essential for rivers and ponds, experts fear a water shortage this year. People all over France are sharing images of dry rivers and lakes that look amazing in winter.

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Associated Press reporters Angela Charlton in Paris, Barbara Surk in Nice, France; Ciaran Giles in Madrid, Frank Jordans in Berlin and Colleen Barry in Milan contributed to this report.