SPAIN is at risk of ‘chronic drought’ due to the march of desertification.
Rain shortage has meant crucial underground aquifers have not been filled for years, which has caused soil to erode – leaving it incapable of absorbing moisture.
Instead, heavy rain washes straight into ravines then into the sea, meaning the ground remains dry and unable to provide moisture to vegetation.
And the figures say it all – reservoirs in Andalucia are currently only 70 per cent full, while this time last year they were 89 per cent full.
“Unless urgent measures are taken, we will end up in a situation of chronic drought,” said Patricio Garcia-Fayos of the Spanish research centre SCIC.
