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Extreme drought in northern Italy has doubled over the past two decades

Politiko 2023-11-14 10:29:11

Extreme drought in northern Italy has doubled over the past two decades

Extreme drought in northern Italy has doubled over the past two decades, creating a climate that increasingly mirrors that of Ethiopia and the Horn of Africa, studies show .

Analysis of satellite images and data by scientists reveals how global warming is creating erratic extremes. Analysis of climate data released by WaterAid and Cardiff and Bristol Universities reveals that under extreme climate pressures, areas that once experienced frequent droughts are now more prone to frequent flooding, while other historically flood-prone regions now endure droughts more frequent.

Ethiopia's southern Shabelle region, which between 1980 and 2000 experienced multiple bouts of flooding, is showing a shift toward prolonged and severe drought, analysis released Tuesday shows. The Shabelle River, which is a major source of water for Somalia, recently experienced the worst drought conditions in the Horn of Africa. Increased droughts are reflected in northern Italy, and research shows that the number of intense dry spells experienced by both areas has more than doubled since 2000.

But as part of what researchers describe as a "change in climate risk", droughts in both regions have been accompanied by extreme rainfall that causes devastating floods, which were experienced in Italy's Lombardy region this summer.

The research examined the frequency and magnitude of flood and drought hazards over the past 41 years at sites in six countries: Pakistan, Ethiopia, Uganda, Burkina Faso, Ghana and Mozambique. Italy was included as a European comparison.

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