Parts of northern Europe have been affected by a drought of unprecedented proportions for several weeks, stretching from Scotland to the Netherlands. If it continues, it could reduce the future yield of crops currently being sown by farmers.
There has been much less rain than normal in northern France, Belgium and the United Kingdom this spring, leaving the soil dry and dusty in places. Spring crops have not yet germinated in the fields due to the exceptionally dry weather. Farmers are relying on irrigation, but this requires resources.
From one extreme to the other
Luke Abblitt, a farmer in eastern England, is 'praying for rain' as the UK experiences its driest spring in over a hundred and fifty years. 'We're going from one extreme to the other: it rains a lot in winter and less in spring and summer,' he told AFP. He has now resigned himself to adapting his growing methods or "exploring new" resistant varieties. According to the main British agricultural union, the NFU, some farmers have started irrigating earlier. The NFU is calling for investment to install storage tanks on farms. Meanwhile, in the Netherlands, it has never rained so little since records began in 1906, according to Samuel Jonson Sutanto and Inge de Graaf, researchers at Wageningen University. According to them, 'the ecological impact is becoming increasingly visible [...] with negative consequences for flora and fauna.' In Denmark, the Meteorological Institute warned in early May that the previous three months had been exceptionally dry, with less than 63 mm of rain recorded. Added to this is the above-normal amount of sunshine and temperatures in Denmark. Since 15 May, the drought index has been greater than or equal to 9 on a scale of 1 to 10. This is the earliest that the index has reached this level since it was established in 2005. In Sweden, the Swedish Farmers' Federation is advising farmers to review their water planning.
There is a need for irrigation
In France, the underground water tables are full, but plants need surface water to grow, i.e. rain. However, the north of the country has been on drought alert since Monday. Between February and early May, the region received its usual monthly rainfall, but the north-easterly winds have exacerbated soil drying. Consequently, farmers are increasingly relying on irrigation. This is the case for Sébastien De Coninck, an endive grower. His village, Beuvry-la-Forêt in the Nord department, received eight times less rainfall between March and May than during the same period last year, which was particularly wet, he told AFP. 'Until five years ago, we didn't consider irrigation in the north of the country,' he says, 'but things are changing because yields can vary by as much as twofold with or without irrigation.' While irrigation can "compensate for this lack of precipitation", as acknowledged by agronomist Nicolas Guilpart, the necessary resources are still required. Water for irrigation is drawn from groundwater, nearby rivers or reservoirs, also known as 'basins'. In France, temperatures are also above normal, particularly in the Hauts-de-France region. This makes the atmosphere drier, leading to more evapotranspiration — a combination of evaporation and plant transpiration — and therefore increasing the water demand of plants, explains the agronomist. However, this intense drought in northern Europe contrasts with conditions in southern Europe, particularly Spain and Portugal, where rainfall has been double the usual amount during this period.
(Irrigazette with AFP)
