Parts of Europe have recently experienced drier conditions in early spring due to warmer temperatures, extremely low rainfall and low snowfall in the past winter. The continent is facing a severe water shortage, and there have been discussions of declaring a “drought emergency” in some places like Catalonia that have been brutally impacted.

As of April, Catalonia had experienced over 30 months of drought that peaked in what has been described as the hottest and driest April recorded. While Catalonia has faced water shortages in the past due to its Mediterranean climate, this year has been particularly tough for farmers in the region because the extended drought has caused reservoirs to reduce to about 27 percent of their capacity, leading to tighter restrictions on water use in the region. The current restrictions placed on Catalonia include a 15 percent reduction in industrial water use, a 40 percent reduction in agricultural water use and the municipal allocation of 230 liters of water for total water use per person per day.

In total, the Catalan agri-food sector generates over €40 billion and produces meat, vegetable oils, wine, fruit and cereals that account for 23 percent of Spain’s agricultural sector that is exported to other European countries. The constraints on agricultural water use may severely impact the harvest of several crops, including the annual production of 140 million kilograms of rice from the region. Because irrigated land may be lost due to these current restrictions, wheat and barley harvests that exist on rainfed land may also be impacted by the drought. Another impact of the drought on Catalonia’s agricultural sector is the reduction in vegetation has hindered the production of honey by bees in the region. Even with the seven days of rain that have occurred in Catalonia, the Catalan Water Agency director, Samuel Reyes, believes that the rain is not enough to end the drought as these problems have not been resolved.

As a result of these potential and current losses, farmers from Catalonia demanded financial aid to mitigate the severe disruptions to the water irrigation systems in the region. The Spanish government has responded by approving a €2.2 billion plan to assist farmers and residents in coping with the drought, with the objective of increasing water production and building capacity to navigate future water shortages. Of this money, €1.4 billion that has been allocated by the environment ministry will be used to build desalination plants, double water production plants, and other infrastructure to increase water availability and production. The rest of the money that was allocated by the agriculture ministry will be used to maintain current food production to avoid food shortages.