The worst drought Italy has faced in 70 years is thirsting paddy fields in the Po River valley and jeopardizing the harvest of premium rice used for risotto.
Italy’s largest river is turning into a long stretch of sand due to the lack of rain, leaving the Lomellina rice flats — nestled between the Po and the Alps — without the necessary water to flood the paddies.
“Normally this field is supposed to be flooded with 2cm to 5cm of water, but now it seems to be on a sandy beach,” rice farmer Giovanni Daghetta said as he walked through the dying rice fields in the town of Mortara.
Photo: EPA-EFE
Farmers there have been producing the famed Arborio rice for centuries. The wide grains of this local variety are deemed perfect for absorbing the flavors of risotto dishes.
UN Food and Agriculture Organization data showed that drought stress is the most damaging factor for rice, especially in the early stages of its growth.
Heat waves, such as those repeatedly hitting Italy with peaks of 40°C, can significantly reduce the yield of surviving rice.
“This paddy hasn’t been irrigated for two weeks now, and 90 percent of the plants have already fully dried,” Daghetta said. “The remaining 10 percent that are still slightly green urgently need to be submerged with water within two or three days.”
However, with more dry days forecast, Daghetta had little hope that would happen.
The lack of rainfall has brought governors of some Italian regions to declare a state of emergency to conserve water and coordinate the management of minimal resources.
The region’s main water sources, the rivers Po and Dora Baltea, are eight times lower than the average seasonal levels, said the West Sesia irrigation association, which regulates water distribution through a maze of channels that snake through the rice fields.
“From the river Po, we were supposed to receive a flow rate of 160,000 liters per second, while we currently have an approximate flow rate between 30,000 and 60,000 liters per second,” association president Stefano Bondesa said.
As a result of the water shortage, Bondesa was forced to take a few unpopular decisions, recently ruling to stop irrigating poplars, fruit trees and second crops to give priority to rice.
Tensions are starting to increase between upstream and downstream regions along the river basin, and between hydroelectric plants and farmers who are all vying for the same dwindling resource.
It is feared that larger conflicts could be next if rainfall does not relieve empty reservoirs soon.
Even Italy’s wealthiest city is feeling the effects of drought.
The mayor of Milan on Saturday signed an ordinance turning off the spigots of public decorative fountains to save water.
Milan Archbishop Mario Delpini made a pilgrimage to pray for “the gift of rain.”
He visited three churches that serve the farming communities on the outskirts of the city, reciting the Rosary and using holy water to bless a field in front of the St Martin Olearo di Mediglia church.
It seemed his prayers were at least partially heard, when Milan and part of northern Italy were on Tuesday temporarily relieved by several scattered showers.
Seven people sustained mostly minor injuries in an airplane fire in South Korea, authorities said yesterday, with local media suggesting the blaze might have been caused by a portable battery stored in the overhead bin. The Air Busan plane, an Airbus A321, was set to fly to Hong Kong from Gimhae International Airport in southeastern Busan, but caught fire in the rear section on Tuesday night, the South Korean Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said. A total of 169 passengers and seven flight attendants and staff were evacuated down inflatable slides, it said. Authorities initially reported three injuries, but revised the number
A colossal explosion in the sky, unleashing energy hundreds of times greater than the Hiroshima bomb. A blinding flash nearly as bright as the sun. Shockwaves powerful enough to flatten everything for miles. It might sound apocalyptic, but a newly detected asteroid nearly the size of a football field now has a greater than 1 percent chance of colliding with Earth in about eight years. Such an impact has the potential for city-level devastation, depending on where it strikes. Scientists are not panicking yet, but they are watching closely. “At this point, it’s: ‘Let’s pay a lot of attention, let’s
‘BALD-FACED LIE’: The woman is accused of administering non-prescribed drugs to the one-year-old and filmed the toddler’s distress to solicit donations online A social media influencer accused of filming the torture of her baby to gain money allegedly manufactured symptoms causing the toddler to have brain surgery, a magistrate has heard. The 34-year-old Queensland woman is charged with torturing an infant and posting videos of the little girl online to build a social media following and solicit donations. A decision on her bail application in a Brisbane court was yesterday postponed after the magistrate opted to take more time before making a decision in an effort “not to be overwhelmed” by the nature of allegations “so offensive to right-thinking people.” The Sunshine Coast woman —
CHEER ON: Students were greeted by citizens who honked their car horns or offered them food and drinks, while taxi drivers said they would give marchers a lift home Hundreds of students protesting graft they blame for 15 deaths in a building collapse on Friday marched through Serbia to the northern city of Novi Sad, where they plan to block three Danube River bridges this weekend. They received a hero’s welcome from fellow students and thousands of local residents in Novi Said after arriving on foot in their two-day, 80km journey from Belgrade. A small red carpet was placed on one of the bridges across the Danube that the students crossed as they entered the city. The bridge blockade planned for yesterday is to mark three months since a huge concrete construction
RSS