Andalusia droughtAs well as Catalonia, in northeast Spain, the southern region of Andalusia is another struggling with severe drought.The regional authorities there have warned that water-use restrictions will be needed in Seville and Malaga this summer if rain does not return.Andalusia and Catalonia are Spain’s two most populous regions.Both are preparing to import fresh water by boat if needed, an expensive option that officials admit would not sufficiently make up for the lack of rain.”We need 30 days of rain,” the head of the Andalusia regional government, Juan Manuel Moreno, said recently.”But real rain, not just drizzle — at least 30 straight days of it.”Several heatwaves recorded in Spain and wider Europe last summer aggravated the shortage because more water evaporated from reservoirs, and consumers used more to keep cool.Unseasonally warm weather has continued into 2024.Temperatures rose to nearly 30 degrees Celsius (86 Fahrenheit) in some regions in January — something usually seen in June.Experts say climate change driven by human activity is boosting the intensity and frequency of extreme weather events, such as heatwaves, droughts and wildfires.Catalonia has built desalination plants and adopted other measures, but some campaigners say it is crucial to improve the use of both wastewater and groundwater resources.”The drought is not just due to a lack of rain, it is the result of bad management,” Greenpeace said in a statement.
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