ENNA, Italy: A severe drought in Sicily has nearly dried up the Mediterranean island's only natural lake which has long served as a vital resting station for birds migrating between Africa and Europe. Sicily has suffered months of below-average rainfall, with the Italian government declaring a state of emergency over the crisis, which has devastated crops and desiccated pastures. Lake Pergusa, part of a natural reserve close to the central Sicilian town of Enna, has shrunk dramatically because of a lethal mix of hot weather and low rains, scientists said.
"The lake is no longer there. The part of the water that was visible has completely disappeared, apart from this puddle," said Giuseppe Maria Amato, from environmentalist group Legambiente, pointing to a pool of water. Sicily has long grappled with climate change-related high temperatures, setting a European heat record in 2021 of 48.
8 degrees Celsius, and a number of towns have had to introduce water rationing. Drought crises have hit elsewhere in Europe in recent years, including in France and Spain, especially affecting the Mediterranean area where the average temperature is now 1.5 degrees Celsius higher than 150 years ago.
"Lake Pergusa is an indicator of what Sicily is suffering due to climate change," Amato said, saying a lack of maintenance and a poor sewage system were exacerbating the emergency. The lake's surface normally covers 1.8 sq km and has no rivers flowing in or out of it.
It appears in the Roman poet Ovid.