2022 European drought

During the summer of 2022, parts of Europe experienced drought conditions exacerbated by heat waves. This was preceded by a warm and dry spring. On 9 August, a senior European Commission researcher said it seems to be Europe's worst year in 500 years. A report from the Global Drought Observatory has confirmed this. The drought had serious consequences for hydropower generation and the cooling systems of nuclear power plants, as the drought reduced the amount of river water available for cooling. Agriculture in Europe was also negatively affected by the drought.