But melting ice from glaciers and the Antarctic ice sheet is also contributing. The rise is mostly due to thermal expansion of the oceans because of warming. The sea level rose over the course of the 20th century, and the tendency has accelerated in recent decades. In some regions, certain risks such as early spring floods could decrease in the short term with less winter snowfall, but the increased risk of flash flooding in mountain areas overloading the river system may offset those effects in the medium term. Heavy rainstorms are projected to become more common and more intense due to higher temperatures, with flash floods expected to become more frequent across Europe. Climate change is likely to increase the frequency of flooding across Europe in the coming years. River flooding is a common natural disaster in Europe, which has, along with storms, resulted in fatalities, affected millions of people and incurred massive economic losses in the last three decades. Increased rainfall over extended periods will mainly lead to fluvial (river) flooding, while short, intense cloudbursts can cause pluvial floods, where extreme rainfall causes flooding without any body of water overflowing. Regions that are not currently prone to fires could become risk areas.Ĭlimate change is expected to lead an increase of precipitation in many areas. Climate change is also expanding the area at risk from wildfires. More frequent and severe droughts will increase the length and severity of the wildfire season, particularly in the Mediterranean region. With a global average temperature increase of 3☌, it is projected that droughts would happen twice as often and absolute annual losses from droughts in Europe would increase to EUR 40 billion per year, with the most severe impacts in the Mediterranean and Atlantic regions. Extreme droughts are becoming more common in Europe, and the damage they cause is also growing. In Europe, most of the roughly EUR 9 billion annual losses caused by drought affect agriculture, the energy sector and the public water supply. They reduce water levels in rivers and ground water, stunt tree and crop growth, increase pest attacks and fuel wildfires. It differs from water scarcity, which is the structural year-round lack of fresh water resulting from the over-consumption of water.ĭroughts often have knock-on effects, for example on transport infrastructure, agriculture, forestry, water and biodiversity. A drought is an unusual and temporary deficit in water availability caused by the combination of lack of precipitation and more evaporation (due to high temperatures). However, global warming affects the predictability of events and therefore our capacity to respond effectively.ĭue to the changing climate, many European regions are already facing more frequent, severe, and longer lasting droughts. Low-temperature extremes (cold spells, frosty days) could become less frequent in Europe. Higher temperatures increase the evaporation of water, which – together with the lack of precipitation – increases the risks of severe droughts. Meanwhile, the yields and viability of agriculture and livestock, or the capacity of ecosystems to provide important services and goods (such as the supply of clean water or cool and clean air) could be diminished. This could in turn lead to increased numbers of pests and invasive species, and a higher incidence of certain human diseases. Temperature rises are also likely to influence phenology – the behaviour and lifecycles of animal and plant species. These changes are altering the distribution and abundance of many plant and animal species, which are already under pressure from habitat loss and pollution. Higher temperatures are also expected to cause a shift in the geographical distribution of climate zones. The most vulnerable members of the population, such as the elderly and infants, will be most severely affected. Higher temperatures can cause increased mortality, reduced productivity and damage to infrastructure. The climate crisis has increased the average global temperature and is leading to more frequent high-temperature extremes, such as heatwaves.
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