Breaking News Turkey with agencies
Rainfall in the Marmara Region has dramatically decreased by nearly fifty percent in February, according to the country’s Meteorological Service.
Precipitation downed by 67 percent in February compared to the same period of the previous year and by 46 percent compared to the long-term average.
113.6 millimeters of precipitation fell in the region in February last year, and 38 millimeters in the same month this year.
A frequent increase
Türkiye now discusses a water deficit situation since the precipitation has been below the average for 6 months. “Drought has started to increase frequently in Türkiye as well as in the world”, said Guven Ozdemir, a meteorological engineer.
There is no water in 70 percent of the capacity of the dams in Istanbul at the moment. “We have 307 million cubic meters of water in dams which can last about 3 months,” he warned.
Drought causes the soil to lose its properties and decrease its quality.
The worst drought in 500 years in Europe
The economic damage of drought increased by 63 percent in 2021 compared to the 20-year average, according to the World Meteorological Organization.
Meanwhile, Europe is experiencing the worst drought in 500 years.