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Farmers Fear Drought as Italy's Longest River Runs Dry
Farmers and fishermen face worsening losses as river flow drops below 300 cubic meters per second, according to the Italian irrigation agency.
- Seawater has pushed about 20 kilometres upstream into Italy's longest river, the Po River, as the waterway dries during a heatwave, threatening the farming heartland that produces milk for Parmesan cheese.
- According to Aipo, the Po River's flow has collapsed to below 300 cubic metres per second, far below the June average of around 1,500, a decline Stefano Calderoni of the Italian irrigation association says is unprecedented.
- In Scardovari, Paolo Mancin, head of the local fishermen's cooperative, reports water temperatures reached 31 deg C, causing macroalgae to form and high clam mortality as farmers struggle with invasive blue crabs from North America.
- Saltwater is contaminating farmland reclaimed over five centuries, forcing farmers to shut irrigation canals to protect crops, though barriers placed in the river only function when water flow remains sufficiently strong.
- Damiano Di Simine, an expert with environmental group Legambiente, warns there is less than three weeks of water in reserve, while engineer Rodolfo Laurenti notes proposed dams may never be sufficient.
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Seawater threatens farms relying on Italy’s Po as flow falls in heatwave
PORTO TOLLE, Italy, June 27 (Reuters) – The flow of Italy’s Po has dropped dramatically in less than two weeks as a result of the heatwave gripping Europe, allowing salty seawater to advance as far as 18 km (11 miles) inland and raising fears for the delta’s agriculture and protected wetlands. At the last point before the Po branches into several channels feeding into the Adriatic Sea, the flow has dropped from some 1,000 cubic metres per se…
The Po River is vital to a large agricultural area, but its water level has dropped to an unusually low level.
·Copenhagen, Denmark
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Coverage Details
Total News Sources15
Leaning Left3Leaning Right2Center4Last UpdatedBias Distribution45% Center
Bias Distribution
- 45% of the sources are Center
45% Center
L 33%
C 45%
R 22%
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