Page 3 - Drought

Global supplies of sugar, rice at risk from Thai drought that can last yrs

Rainfall across the nation may be as much as 10% below average this monsoon season, and the onset of the El Niño weather pattern could lower precipitation even further over the next two years

Drought and rising heat bring unusual wildfire warnings in northern Europe

Summer is wildfire season in southern Europe, but this year the continent's north is also at risk, with forest fire warnings in effect across the Nordic and Baltic countries. A lack of rain and rising temperatures have led to dangerously dry conditions in the region, leading to worries of a repeat of the summer of 2018 when major wildfires swept across Sweden in particular. Small wildfires are already burning in Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Finland and experts worry it could get much worse unless there's significant rainfall in coming weeks. Unlike the sun-soaked Mediterranean countries, which have to deal with wildfires every summer, the phenomenon is rare in the countries of northern Europe, where summers are normally cool and wet by comparison. These countries are relatively new to drought problems, said Niclas Hjerdt, head of hydrological forecasting at Sweden's weather agency SMHI. We usually have an excess of water up here in northern Europe and Scandinavia. So there isn't th

When does India declare drought and how is it linked to the monsoon

One big change in India's drought management is in the IMD's parlance

Prolonged droughts likely spelled end for Indus magacities: Study

A series of severe and lengthy droughts may have caused the decline of the Indus Civilization cities, according to a study which looked into ancient rock formation from a cave in Uttarakhand. The beginning of this arid periodstarting at around 4,200 years ago and lasting for over two centuriescoincides with the reorganisation of the metropolis-building Indus Civilization, which spanned present-day Pakistan and India. The research, published in the journal Communications Earth & Environment, identified three protracted droughtseach lasting between 25 and 90 yearsduring this arid period. "We find clear evidence that this interval was not a short-term crisis but a progressive transformation of the environmental conditions in which Indus people lived," said study co-author Cameron Petrie, Professor at the University of Cambridge, UK. The researchers charted historic rainfall by examining growth layers in a stalagmite -- a type of rock formation that rises from the floor of a cave -- ..

Human-caused climate change resulting into increased flash droughts: Study

'Flash droughts', or droughts that start and develop rapidly, have become more frequent due to human-caused climate change and the trend is predicted to accelerate in a warmer future, according to a new research. An international team of researchers, including those from the University of Southampton, UK, said that flash droughts are fast becoming the 'new normal' for droughts, making forecasting and preparing for their impact more difficult. Their research is published in the journal Science. Flash droughts, caused by low precipitation and high evapotranspiration and leading to quick depletion of soil of water, can develop into severe droughts within a few weeks. While they start quickly, the droughts can last for months, damaging vegetation and ecosystems, and triggering heat waves and wildfires. The researchers wanted to understand if there had been a transition from conventional 'slow' droughts to flash droughts and also how the trend would develop under different carbon emiss

Drought conditions ease in California after winter storms bring rains, snow

According to the latest data released by US Drought Monitor (USDM) on Thursday, moderate or severe drought still covered about 49 per cent of the Golden State

Fadnavis cites reports, asks officials to make drought mitigation plan

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has asked officials to prepare a comprehensive mitigation plan due to the possibility of drought this year, an official said on Thursday. The official said Fadnavis cited media reports of the United States government's weather agency National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) indicating a possibility of 'El Nino' condition developing late summer. As per weather experts, an 'El Nino' condition is when surface water in the equatorial Pacific Ocean becomes warmer than average and the east winds get weaker, bringing about extremes that include flooding or drought. "There is likelihood of a drought situation this year and the government needs to be well prepared to ensure people's hardship is minimised," the official said. The directives came at the cabinet meeting earlier this week, he added.

J'khand govt launches water conservation scheme with over Rs 467 cr outlay

Jharkhand Agriculture Minister Badal Patralekh launched a water conservation scheme with an outlay of Rs 467.32 crore to provide benefits to farmers in the state that experienced drought last year

Kenya warns of worsening food crisis as drought escalates in arid counties

The food crisis in Kenya's arid counties could escalate amid suppressed October to December 2022 rainy season that led to crop failure, and drying of pasture and water sources, a senior official said

President Biden signs bill to study salt lakes in drought-hit US West

Scientists will get USD 25 million to study salt lake ecosystems in the drought-stricken U.S. West, as President Joe Biden signed legislation Tuesday allocating the funds in the face of unprecedented existential threats caused by the lack of water. The funding allows the United States Geological Survey to study the hydrology of the ecosystems in and around Utah's Great Salt Lake, California's Mono Lake, Oregon's Lake Albert and other saline lakes. Amid a decades-long drought, less snowmelt has flowed through the rivers that feed into the lakes, causing shorelines to recede and lake levels to plummet. Dwindling lake levels jeopardize the people, animals and businesses that rely on maintaining the ecosystem. The lakes often serve as critical habitats for migratory birds. Dust exposed by receding water levels can be blown into the air and have dangerous health effects on surrounding communities. And further depletion threatens the canals and infrastructure that a multi-million dollar

ICAR-IARI develop drought-tolerant, high-yielding chickpea 'Pusa JG 16'

The government's research organisations ICAR and IARI have developed drought tolerant variety of chickpea 'Pusa JG 16' that has potential to boost yield of chickpea in central India. Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR)-Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), in collaboration with Jawaharlal Nehru Krishi Vishwa Vidyalaya (JNKVV) Jabalpur, Rajmata Vijayaraje Scindia Krishi Vishwa Vidyalaya, Gwalior and ICRISAT, Patancheru, Hyderabad have developed drought hardy and higher yielding chickpea variety 'Pusa JG 16', according to a statement. The variety will enhance productivity in the drought prone areas of Central Zone consisting of Madhya Pradesh, Bundelkhand area of Uttar Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Southern Rajasthan, Maharashtra and Gujarat, where terminal drought is a major problem and sometimes leads to 50-100 per cent loss of yield. "Pusa JG 16 variety was developed by using genomic assisted breeding techniques that allowed precision transfer of drought tolerant genes

Ethiopia receives 25,000 tons of food grain from Ukraine amid drought

The first shipment of grain as part of Ukraine's own initiative to supply countries in need arrived in Djibouti Monday for delivery to neighbouring Ethiopia amid the region's worst drought in decades. Ukraine's embassy in Ethiopia confirmed that the Grain from Ukraine" shipment of 25,000 tons is separate from a United Nations World Food Program effort that has funded humanitarian grain shipments from Ukraine. A second ship with 30,000 tons of wheat will be heading to Ethiopia next week, while a third vessel is currently being loaded with 25,000 tons of wheat bound for Somalia, an embassy statement said. Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky last month announced the initiative aimed at helping countries the most struck by the food crisis. Ukraine has said it plans to send more than 60 ships to Ethiopia, Sudan, South Sudan, Somalia, Congo, Kenya, Yemen and other countries. Millions of people in Ethiopia, Somalia and Kenya are going hungry due to drought following the fifth straight

WFP warns drought leading to food insecurity, acute malnutrition in Africa

The impact of drought in Kenya, Ethiopia, and Somalia has led to food insecurity and a high level of acute malnutrition, the UN WFP has warned

Cuba's agriculture under threat due to droughts, rising sea levels

Yordan Diaz Gonzales pulled weeds from his fields with a tractor until Cuba's summer rainy season turned them into foot-deep red mud. Now it takes five farmhands to tend to Daz's crop. That shrinks Diaz's profit margin and lowers Cubas agricultural productivity, already burdened by a US embargo and an unproductive state-controlled economy. Like the rest of the Caribbean, Cuba is suffering from longer droughts, warmer waters, more intense storms, and higher sea levels because of climate change. The rainy season, already an obstacle, has gotten longer and wetter. We're producing a lot less because of the weather, said Diaz, a 38-year-old father of two. "We're going to have to adapt to eating less because with every crop, we harvest less. Diaz used to produce black beans, a staple of the Cuban diet and his most profitable crop. His black-bean production has dropped 70 per cent, which he attributes to climate change. A month after Hurricane Ian hit Cuba, Diaz was farming malanga root,

Climate change targets pose stark challenge for the developing world

Floods and drought, hurricanes and heat waves will make the path out of poverty much more difficult. But trying to limit climate change poses its own set of problems for the developing world

Drought from China to US hits hydro dams, slashing top clean energy source

Globally, hydropower generates more electricity than nuclear and more power than wind and solar combined. In countries like Norway and Brazil, dams generate more than half of total electricity

California braces for another dry winter as severe Western drought drags on

The past three years have been California's driest on record, a streak unlikely to break this winter, state officials said Monday. The official water year concluded Friday, marking an end to a period that saw both record rainfall in October and the driest January-to-March period in at least a century. Scientists say such weather whiplash is likely to become more common as the planet warms. It will take more than a few winter storms to help the state dig out of drought. This is our new climate reality, and we must adapt, Karla Nemeth, director of the state Department of Water Resources, said in a statement. Her comments came ahead of expected remarks Monday by state water officials about what to expect in the months ahead. The water year runs from Oct. 1 to Sept. 30, so that the rainiest winter months are recorded together. Snow that falls in California's mountains typically provides one-third of the state's annual water supply, but last year snow levels were far below average by th

China's drought impacts over 900 mn people; threatens food, energy security

Over 900 million people in over 17 provinces, as well as an estimated 2.2 million hectares of agricultural land in China, have been impacted by the record high temperatures

Water-related disasters to cost world economy $5.6 trn by 2050: Report

This year heavy rains have triggered floods that inundated cities in China and South Korea and disrupted water and electricity supply in India, while drought has put farmers' harvests at risk

China's recovery wobbles as drought, global slowdown add to risks

China's economy continued to recover in August but warning signs are flashing across a number of fronts as drought and weaker global demand add new risks to growth prospects