What does Italy’s drought mean for your holiday and how long will it last?

Italy is suffering an extreme drought amid soaring temperatures and a severe lack of rainfall. As the government brings in emergency measures, what will this mean for visitors to the country?

After months without heavy rainfall, northern Italy is battling its worst drought since 1952. The Po River, the longest in Italy, is hitting record low water levels.

Spiking temperatures and a lack of snow in the mountains that normally feeds the river are exacerbating the situation.

Stretching from the Alps in the northwest to the Adriatic Sea on the east coast, the vast waterway is a vital source of water for several regions. It is used for drinking water, irrigating crops and producing hydroelectric power across northern Italy.

Other rivers are also drying up. The Arno, which flows through Florence and provides tap water, and the Tiber, running through Rome, both have water at half the normal levels for June.

The regions that rely on the water of the Po River are calling for the government to declare a state of emergency.

Junior health minister Andrea Costa said that, in the regions of Lombardy, Piedmont, Veneto and Emilia Romagna, “The conditions necessary to declare a state of emergency have been met.”

More than 100 towns in the Po valley have already been asked to ration water overnight amid the drought. A state of emergency would greenlight the introduction of water rationing throughout the affected regions. Italy’s government is likely to make an announcement in the coming days.

There are also growing concerns for hydroelectric plants, which have generated some 40-50 per cent less power over the past few months. One plant in Piacenza in the Emilia Romagna region has already been forced to temporarily shut down its turbines because