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Date Published: 15/10/2024

Autumn rains in Spain but drought continues to threaten communities

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Southern Spain’s reservoirs are still bone dry despite recent rains, and it is having a knock-on effect on traditional ways of life

Autumn rains in Spain but drought continues to threaten communities

Andalucía’s reservoirs continue to cling to life as the latest batch of rainfall barely made a dent in the region’s water shortage situation.

After a downpour like that, it was hoped that the reservoirs would have been topped up more but the situation is still as parched as ever, and Málaga has just increased water restrictions once again.

According to the Automatic Hydrological Information System (SAIH) Hidrosur, the situation in the reservoirs has hardly improved. Data from October 14, 2024 tells us everything we need to know: Andalucía is still very much in the grips of a prolonged drought.

As we enter autumn and the chestnut collecting season in Spain, the Agricultural Association of Young Farmers (Asaja) us now warning that chestnut farming is being threatened by the drought.

They also highlight depopulation in rural area and pests like the wasp moth as reasons for the decline in chestnut farming. In places like the Genal Valley and the Sierra de las Nieves, this industry is becoming more expensive than it’s worth, with farmers abandoning the effort altogether.

In addition, according to a Future Risks Report that surveyed over 3,000 experts, climate change is the most dangerous risk at a global level. In Spain, it placed second, right behind geopolitical instability.

Water levels in Andalusian reservoirs, autumn 2024

In Cádiz, the Charco Redondo reservoir inched its way up to 22.57%, a laughable rise from last week’s 22.40%. The Guadarranque didn’t feel like moving either, crawling from 32.58% to 32.60%. And then there’s the Zahara-El Gastor reservoir, sitting at a jaw-dropping 10.52%, pretty much unmoved from last week’s equally dismal 10.50%. Guadalcacín, one of the province’s big players, stands at 17.14%, which is basically the same as the previous week.

Over in Málaga, La Viñuela is stubbornly holding on at 13.54%, which again, isn’t much different from last week. Guadalhorce managed to shift from 8.00% to 8.03%, and Guadalteba edged from 11.70% to 11.72%.

Granada, at least, can raise its head a little higher, as the Rules reservoir increased by the grand total of 0.04%. Béznar has clung on at 80.91%, while over in Almería, things aren’t much better. Benínar budged by 0.05%, now sitting at 7.95%, while Cuevas del Almanzora is at a meagre 7.29%.

At the regional level, things are equally grim. The Guadalete-Barbate basin crawled its way up to 20.54% and the Andalusian Mediterranean basins saw a jump to 22.33%, underscoring just how serious the problem is.

Image: Archive

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