The Pinios River tends to turn into a stream in several stretches of it, from the long dryas a result of the depletion of the region’s water resources, with the scientific community ringing “danger bells”.
Its average annual flow is systematically below the minimum permitted ecological limit, which practically defines the viability of the river.
An incalculable blow to agricultural production
This unpleasant development has already dealt an incalculable blow to agricultural production, with farmers finding themselves in a major bind as they face drought after the devastating floods.
The causes
In his statements to the Athens-Macedonian News Agency, Nikitas Mylopoulos, professor and director of the Laboratory of Hydrology and Water Systems Analysis at the Department of Civil Engineering of the University of Thessaly, stresses that the causes of the ecological disaster are well-known and well-known: the absence of organized irrigation networks, outdated irrigation methods and – of course – the very structure of crops, the main characteristic of which is the prevalence of aquatic and chemically preserved species. Parallel human effects (sandblasting, land reclamation, residential expansions, interventions in the natural riverbed, etc.) complement but also aggravate the problem. He makes special reference to the drought episodes in Thessaly, emphasizing:
“In Greece, the increase in the occurrence rate of similar extreme natural phenomena is also a fact: prolonged periods of drought followed by intense storms, warmer winters alternating with more intense heat waves, forest fires and more frequent floods in a country already showing strong signs of ecological degradation, or even destruction. A recent study by the Laboratory of Hydrology and Analysis of Water Systems at the University of Thessaly shows that drought episodes in the Thessaly region will double in the period 2070-2100, will be more severe and long-lasting and will affect a greater percentage of the area for both socioeconomic scenarios of climate change. The results are similar for the prediction of flood phenomena”, he highlights.
All this, as he emphasizes, “in a geographical area with already strong signs of ecological degradation, on the brink of desertification, as a result of the enormous anthropogenic pressure exerted on its natural resources to cover its irrigation activities”.
The results of a relevant study on the water potential of Thessaly, carried out by the same, before the floods, in the scientific laboratory, confirm that the negative water balances in the river basins over several years led to the depletion, in addition to the renewable ones, of a large part of the permanent water reserves.
Source: RES-MPE