Drought: Italy pumps water from Lake Garda

Water pumps from Lake Garda

But Lake Garda also lacks water. Because: Water from the popular lake has now been pumped and fed into the Po River – to counteract the severe drought in the Po Valley.

However, the proposal to withdraw additional quantities of water from Lake Garda was rejected. According to the authorities, it would be too harmful to take more cubic meters from the lake.

The agency noted that water levels in all lakes, with the exception of Lake Garda, were well below the seasonal average.

Cities must be supplied with water by trucks

Some northern towns have had to truck water because of the drought, said Miuccio Percelli, head of the environment agency responsible for overseeing the Po River. Italy’s longest river has fallen three meters below average in recent years.

Lago Maggiore is near the historic low of 1946. Adige has a reduced flow rate of 60 percent. At the Ostiglia power plant near Mantua in Lombard, one of the three power generators has already been turned off due to the lack of enough water to cool the plant.

Agriculture is the sector hardest hit: According to the CIA Growers Association, fruit and vegetable production in the Po Valley is expected to decline by 30 to 40 percent, with peak grains rising, and up to 50 percent for corn and soybeans. The Piedmontese farmers’ association Confagri has applied to declare a state of emergency.