A study by the World Weather Attribution (WWA) published today asserted that the wave of “extreme heat” that hit Spain, Portugal and North Africa at the end of April would be “almost impossible without climate change”.
The WWA is a global network of scientists that assesses the relationship between extreme weather events and climate disruptions, the AFP agency reported.
“The exceptionally early heat wave caused temperatures up to 20 degrees above normal and records for the month of April exceeded by up to 6 degrees” in some places, said the report by ten WWA experts.
A hot, dry air mass from North Africa brought all-time temperature records for April to Portugal and mainland Spain, with 36.9ºC and 38.8ºC respectively, levels more typical of the summer months of July or August.
In Morocco, the mercury exceeded 41 degrees for the first time in April in several cities, while in points in Algeria it exceeded the 40 ºC barrier.
“Such heat would have been almost impossible without climate change,” said the study by the network founded by prestigious climatologists, whose results do not follow the long process of publication in scientific journals, but are prepared based on a scientific methodology.
For its part, the State Meteorological Agency (Aemet) of Spain, published on its Twitter: “April 2023 has been, on average, the warmest and driest month in mainland Spain” since the beginning of the historical series, which begins in 1961″.
Researcher at the Netherlands Meteorological Institute and WWA member Sjoukje Philip warned that “the western Mediterranean region will see more frequent and more intense heat waves in the future as global warming progresses.”
The heat also occurred in the midst of “a historic drought of several years” in this region, which “amplifies extreme temperatures,” said the WWA report.
In Spain, the main farmers’ union, Coag, estimated that 60% of Spanish agricultural land is currently “suffocated” by lack of rainfall.
The country’s reservoirs are currently at less than 50% of their capacity, and even at a quarter in some areas, such as Catalonia.
Meanwhile, the Spanish government came out to defend the State Meteorological Agency (Aemet), after being the target of insults and threats by anonymous people through social networks, by email or by phone.
Due to this, the Minister of Ecological Transition, Teresa Ribera, tweeted: “It is time to say enough to these attacks because lying, giving wings to conspiracy and fear and insulting impoverishes us as a society.”
Source: Ambito
