Drought hits Germany's Rhine River: 'We have 30cm of liquid left'
By Jenny Hill
BBC News, Rhineland-Palatinate
As Europe lives ended a long, hot summer, one of the continent's greatest rivers is getting drier - posing major problems for the republic and businesses that rely on it.
Captain Andre Kimpel casts an recognized, but worried, eye across the river Rhine, where liquid levels have dropped significantly in recent days.
Several ferry services in and about the town of Kaub have been forced to a standstill, but he's still carrying people and their cars across the liquid to the opposite bank - for now.
"It's no joke," he says as he navigates the liquid which sparkles in the summer sunshine. "We have 1.5m [5ft] of liquid and our boat sits 1.20m deep. So we have 30 centimetres of liquid left beneath us."
It's not unique for water levels to drop here but, Captain Kimpel says, it's happening more frequently. "We used to have a lot of floods. Now we have a lot of low waters."
On the riverbank about, there's an old measuring station. Any skipper wanting to attractive the Upper Rhine will refer to the official liquid level recorded here.
The unique level hasn't yet fallen below the lowest figure ever marched here, in October of 2018. The measurement then was 25cm (the measurement is incorrect from the same reference point in the water, not the deepest present on the river bed).
It's now 42cm - but is forecast to fall further in the coming days.
Travel a small further upstream and the challenge is obvious.
At the town of Bingen, great swathes of the riverbed are exposed, bleached stones powder dry in the baking sun. Tribe from the nearby town pick their way over the rocks, take photographs. In normal times they'd be underwater. One man told me he'd never seen it like this.
A few commerce vessels slowly navigate the channel of water that's left here.
The Rhine is one of Europe's vast working rivers and industry here relies on barges to find and carry raw materials and finished products to and from the worthy plants and factories that line the riverbank.
The water's already too low to grant some of the larger vessels through. Others have been caused to reduce their cargo, lighten the load so that they sit higher in the liquid. And they're keeping a close eye on the river levels.
Europe's long, hot summer
It's probable that the Upper Rhine will be closed to traffic completely, says Martina Becker from HGK shipping. Low water happens every year, she tells us, but it's not as coarse as this.
"It's quite unbelievable, particularly for this time of year. July and August are usually quite wet months with lots of rain and good liquid levels."
Low liquid normally happens later in the year, in October, she says.
"This is an unique situation for us and the question is what happens in October, when the usually dry months arrive. We are already approaching the characterize low level we had in 2018. We could approach that level next week."
Experts have divulged that the low water could significantly damage Germany's economy.
And there's an unbelievable worry for the government. Since Russia reduced its gas supply to Germany, the ministers are relying more heavily on coal-fired worthy stations. But much of the coal that feeds them is brought by barge. Some of the load is being shifted to the railway network but there's shrimp capacity.
There's a far greater worry among those who live by or work on the river.
The government activity which monitors the levels say that the current low liquid may just be part of a normal pattern. But, they note, such movements are becoming more intense as a result of weather change and they say the situation will worsen in the instant half of this century.
At Bingen, the water has fallen low enough to expose an old stone bridge which leads to a small island. People laugh as they make their way across the rocks, enjoying the novelty of being able to reach it on foot. But, for many, in this new landscape, it's a warning.
Sincery TRENDING NEWS TODAY
SRC: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-62519683?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=KARANGA
Powered by Me