Housing crisis: Only 300 properties available for rent in Dublin
While supply is becoming virtually nonexistent, rents are increasing faster than anytime in the last 16 years
Milan's decorative fountains will go quiet for a while, Source: magro_kr, on Flickr (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)
The arid weather phenomenon is affecting the agricultural sector in Northern Italy to almost unprecedented levels
Yesterday, the mayor of Milan, Giuseppe Sala, ordered that the spigots of the city’s decorative fountains be turned off in view of the severe drought affecting all of Northern Italy. This is just one of the measures taken to prevent water wasting and conservation during the extreme aridity period.
The Lombardy Region (where Milan is located) declared a state of emergency on Friday after suffering a heat wave and months without any significant rainfall. The levels of the country’s main river – the Po – are so low that it is sure to affect the harvest season this year. The latter adds to already elevated concerns about food security in the wake of the Ukraine war.
Mayor Sala said the ordinance would turn off decorative fountains except those holding flora and fauna that need fresh water. It further limits the use of water sprinklers except for new-growth trees.
The mayor also decreed that shops in Italy's business and fashion capital can't set thermostats under 26 degrees Celsius and must keep their doors closed to avoid overtaxing the power grid.
What’s more, the Archbishop of Milan made a pilgrimage on Saturday to pray for rain, visiting churches in the farming outskirts of the city.
Italy’s drought has dried up rivers crucial for irrigation, including the Po, threatening some 3 billion euros in agriculture, Italian farm lobby Coldiretti said this week. Italy's confederation of agricultural producers, Copagri, estimates the loss of 30%-40% of the seasonal harvest.
The regional governments of Piedmonte, Emilia Romagna and Lazio have also declared states of emergency due to the drought. Italy's longest river, the Po, which crosses the major northern regions and accounts for around a third of the country’s agricultural production, is experiencing its worst drought in 70 years.
Italy’s other major rivers and lakes are below normal June levels. The weather forecast for the rest of the month adds to the concern, with temperatures expected to be 10C-12C above normal next week, with peaks of up to 44 degrees Celsius expected on the islands of Sardinia and Sicily.
EU border countries and communities are increasingly growing uneasy about tolerating daily visits from the aggressor country
The local Senate has introduced a package of measures, aiming to curb municipal energy consumption
This is a brand new step in the internationalization strategy of the Italian state railway company plans to expand
Greece is the only country that registered an increase, compared to numbers from July 2022
The flying machines will disperse seed balls in order to try to save the thin and sensitive soil from erosion in the autumn
If the system proves successful, authorities will scale it up to the rest of Dublin
City authorities say that the park would be complete by mid-December
This summer, the Iberian Peninsula has turned into a veritable tinder source ready for disaster
Greece is the only country that registered an increase, compared to numbers from July 2022
EU border countries and communities are increasingly growing uneasy about tolerating daily visits from the aggressor country
The monument will be a creative and literally moving sculpture called ‘Standing Waves’
The famous Zundert Corso returns on 4-5 September 2022
These will be spread across 11 EU countries and will serve to support the EU Missions
The European Commission has accepted to develop the idea
An interview about AYR, one of the 2021 New European Bauhaus Prize winners
A conversation with the President of the European Committee of the Regions, about energy, climate change and the underrated importance of cohesion policy
Interview with Herald Ruijters, Director, Directorate-General for Mobility and Transport (DG MOVE), European Commission
A conversation with the Mayor of Matosinhos, Portugal’s first UN Resilience Hub