2024-03-27 16:37:23
Soil drought may develop in the coming days, especially in the upper layer up to 40 centimeters, according to current information on the Intersucho project website. It threatens despite the fact that the winter was above average in terms of precipitation. A lot of water fell in the form of rain and has already drained from the landscape. The risk of such an early drought is due to the unusual course of winter and the early awakening of vegetation.
Scientists evaluate the degree of drought based on a comparison of the current situation with the average amount of water in the soil between 1961 and 2010. So far, the situation is favorable, but considering that almost all the snow has melted and remains only in the highest mountain locations, the water supply is replenished only from current rainfall.
According to the forecast for the next nine days, almost the entire Liberec region, for example, is threatened with rapid drying against the average, while the Šluknov promontory could be the most affected. Likewise, there will probably be less water than usual in the Beskydy Mountains, part of the Šumava Mountains, the Novohradské Mountains, the Broumovské Víběžek, the Orlické foothills and the Jeseníky Mountains.
According to the forecast, the drought, albeit to a lesser extent, can also affect the area from the east of southern Bohemia through the west of Vysočina towards central Bohemia.
Farmers don’t have to worry yet, but that could change quickly
That the water supply in the soil will decrease relatively quickly is evident from the forecast maps that show the relative saturation of the soil. “Soil moisture will depend a lot on the amount of precipitation from the cold front. So far, model estimates differ. We now assume that even thanks to the warm weather, the soil will dry out more,” the scientists said.
At the beginning of April, 60 percent of the territory may have reduced soil moisture, and 30 percent may experience mild and worse drought categories. According to scientists, the situation will be worse in Bohemia and in the layer up to 40 centimeters.
There is no cause for concern for farmers yet, there is plenty of water at the beginning of the growing season, especially compared to a number of previous years. But the situation can change very quickly and will depend heavily on the amount of precipitation in the coming weeks.
While meteorologists used to talk mainly about flash floods, last year the term flash drought also entered their vocabulary. That is, one that, due to above-average temperatures and the absence of precipitation, developed faster than was previously common.