MADRID - Spain has suffered the driest year on record and meteorologists do not forecast enough rain in the coming months to top up drained reservoirs, the National Institute of Meteorology said on Monday. <
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>In the 12 months to the end of August 2005 Spain received almost 40 percent less rain than in average years, the institute said in a statement. It was the driest year since records began in 1947.<
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>Water reserves stand at 43 percent of capacity, and in one southern area as low as 13 percent.<
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>Angel Rivera, head of forecasting at the institute, said heavy Atlantic storms would be needed through the autumn and winter to reverse damage from the drought, but heavy rainfall was not expected.<
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>"The models we have ... (suggest) that the rains in autumn will be normal or even less than normal," Rivera said.<
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>Drought caused massive crop failure this year while hydroelectric production fell 36 percent in the first eight months of this year, industry data showed.<
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>The northeastern region of Catalunya has imposed water restrictions, including banning the use of reservoirs for hydroelectric generation while some parched parts of Spain have depended on tankers for their water.<
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>In the south authorities have opened emergency wells to guarantee water supply for tourists. <
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>-RT- <i></i>
SERIOUS DROUGHT!
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DEVILRAYS
Re: SERIOUS DROUGHT!
Jeez, Spain gets NO rain, and Louisiana gets flooded...sheesh. Something's not right with our weather system here on planet Earth. I wish the people of Spain the best, but I don't know what can really be done for them. <i></i>