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Climate change, inefficient irrigation threatens Italy’s Po River

climate change threatens italys po river delta

With global warming laying its devilish hands on the planet and its ecosystem, the future of the Earth’s climate is in dire threat. Previous predictions have pictured the planet with most of its major rivers disappeared from the map!

To add to the list, the Po River is also growing vulnerable at the hands of climate change – i.e. the rising sea levels, reduced rainfall and lack of snow in the Alps, all combined.

Just a few decades from now, and the last 100 kilometers (60 miles) of the river will be rendered useless. The deteriorating of the water quality and the way it is exploited, will be leading the river with saltwater intrusion.

Experts at a recent meeting in Parma predicted these dire consequences of climate change on the northern Italy’s economically strategic Po River basin. What is more worrying is the agriculture of the region, which would suffer form the crisis.

Do you know, about one-third of Italy’s food production depends on freshwater that come from the Po River basin? Coldiretti, Italy’s main farmers’ organization is also concerned over these consequences.

What is needed is immediate intervention to cap this alarmingly forth-coming disaster. And this can be done by bringing major changes in the use of the river’s water. Every year, some 73 percent of the 2.5 billion cubic metres of water are drawn from the Po River for irrigation purposes.

Experts fear this pattern of exploitation of the basin – the ‘water use pattern’ is claimed to be ‘not’ sustainable. The fate of the river is in the hands of the farmers.

It is only if they use the river’s water more efficiently, i.e. engage efficient and more scientific irrigation techniques and also drastically cut back on crops that feed hugely on water – like rice, corn and kiwi.

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