Water restrictions have been ordered in several parts of Italy due to the drought caused by the heat wave

By: STA Date: 2023. 08. 24. 10:30

Temperatures are still around forty degrees in the central and northern parts of Italy, and due to the extreme drought, water restrictions have been introduced in Liguria and Sicily as of Thursday.

(Photo: Pixabay)

The highest temperature in the last twenty-four hours was measured in the city of Nice Monferrato in the province of Piedmont, where the thermometer reached 40.3 degrees Celsius. In Turin, 37.7 degrees were measured, which is also a record high for the time of year. On Thursday, 17 and on Friday in 19 major cities, the highest grade red heat alert is valid. Forty degrees of heat are expected in Florence, Prato, Arezzo, Bologna, Mantua, Alessandria, Milan, Padua, Rome and the Alpine city of Bolzano, as well as in Sardinia and the island of Sicily. The temperature does not drop significantly below thirty degrees at night either.

This summer’s last heat wave is named after Emperor Nero and is expected to weaken from Saturday

The heat from the African Sahara desert region is replaced by cooler air from Great Britain: the new weather front bringing precipitation and storms was named Poppea by Italian meteorologists after the second wife of the Roman emperor Nero. The lack of rainfall in recent months has meanwhile necessitated the introduction of water restrictions, not only in Sicily, where this has been a common practice for decades, but also in northwestern Liguria. In Imperia, Sanremo, Taggia and other municipalities, the use of drinking water is restricted from midnight to five in the morning until September 10. Water use is also restricted during the day: watering gardens, filling pools and washing cars are prohibited.

According to data from the Coldiretti producers’ association, due to the extreme heat and lack of rainfall, this year wheat production fell by ten percent compared to last year, the amount of grapes grown by fourteen percent, pears by sixty-three percent, and the amount of honey decreased by seventy percent.

MTI

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