Spanish Environment Ministry - Alicante (SE Spain) Facing Permanent Drought Thanks To Climate Shift

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Climate change will make drought a permanent phenomenon in Alicante. That’s the warning from The Ministry of the Environment who say there will be 40% less rain in the south of the province this century, with temperatures rising sharply.

The report by Spanish scientists to the National Climate Council looks ahead to 2071. If emissions of greenhouse gases are not reduced, Alicante province will be one of the worst affected areas in Spain; reservoirs may never be able to recover from the effects and river diversions may also be affected.

The 40% decrease in rainfall is equivalent to 150 litres per square metre and will mean not only more intense droughts but also more intense torrential rain and higher sea temperatures. The 156.4 litres that fell in 2005 made the area the 6th driest year since records began in 1856, and the 5th since 1994. The average temperature will also rise by 4.5ºC, mostly between April and October.

Head of the Climatology Department at Alicante University, Jorge Olcina, indicated that the principal problem is that, “all the signals point to climate change marked by aridity and the advance of desertification in Alicante, where rain will be less often and more irregular.”

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