Po's drying threatens farming heartland as heatwave deepens

Italy's longest river is running dry as the continent's severe heatwave deepens, with seawater beginning to seep into the Po's mouth in what The Local Italy described Saturday as a crisis hitting "a farming heartland that produces the milk for Parmesan cheese." The phenomenon signals a broader threat to agricultural production across northern and central Italy, including Umbria, where irrigation and water supply for dairy herds and cereal crops depend on river systems fed by Alpine snowmelt and seasonal rainfall now severely depleted.

The Po's decline reflects the scale of the current heatwave, which according to The Local Italy affected at least 193 million Europeans facing temperatures above 35 degrees Celsius on Saturday alone. France 24 reported Thursday that human-caused climate change is "unequivocally" responsible for the intensity of the record-breaking conditions, with scientists warning of both immediate health risks and longer-term economic costs as agricultural productivity falters. The Local Italy noted Friday that Italian cities face renewed blackouts as grid operators warned of further disruption as the heatwave reaches its peak.

For Umbrian farmers, the convergence of heat stress and water scarcity presents a compound threat. The region's agricultural economy—centred on dairy products, cereals, and the chocolate and food processing that depend on consistent water supply—now faces the same pressures reported across the Po Valley. The Local Italy reported Friday that five more people in Italy died from heat on Wednesday as researchers warned the current heatwave was likely the longest on record, with red heat alerts rising to 17 cities by Thursday.