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maltatoday, SUNDAY, 21 FEBRUARY 2016 16 News Warm winter prompts fears of impact on bees and fodder MARTINA BORG THE unseasonably warm and sunny winter days this year may be welcome to those who don't like the cold, but the people who till the land and grow our fruit have been wor- ried this past year, and continue to be so: this weather could spell trouble both for fruit cul- tivation later in the year, and for fodder production for livestock. Agronomist Charles Zahra is predicting a very low fodder yield this year from Malta's dry land, whose fodder is also used for the production of mush- room substrate. "The probability will be that both these sectors will need to rely on imports from other countries to sustain pro- duction, otherwise the shortage might lead to issues in keeping livestock well nourished, both for meat production and for animal byprod- ucts like milk and cheese for instance." Besiders fodder and mushrooms, the ongo- ing dryness and warmth might also wreak havoc in the systems and lifestyles of bees. "Bees are essential for the pollination of many horticultural crops, and they are hav- ing reduced nectar availability… this ulti- mately affects the pollination of horticultural crops such as peaches, nectarines, melons, watermelons, broad beans and strawberries, besides beekeeping itself." Earlier this week, a number of growers from the Farmers' Market in Ta' Qali who spoke to MaltaToday also pointed out that the warmth is expected to stall fruit produc- tion, given that trees are not going through the necessary hibernation brought on by colder temperatures, which then helps them to produce fruit in the warmer months. "Although it is early to predict what type of summer we will be having, the mild winter also means that the shallow Maltese soils have very low water moisture, and therefore will not support vegetation during the dry summer months unless farmers turn to irri- gation," Zahra said, adding that he would not be surprised if peach, apricot, pear, young ol- ive trees and vines growing on dry land end up collapsing due to drought in the coming months. The scene at the Farmers' Market is not however, all doom and gloom. Some farm- ers experienced something of a boom in the growth and harvests of vegetables like zucchini, potatoes and cauli- flowers and fruits like strawber- ries and tomatoes. "The immediate effect on fruit is in fact, currently being exemplified by strawberries; they will experience an an- ticipated harvest," Zahra said, adding that Spanish straw- berry producers have calcu- lated that we are experienc- ing a season anticipated by as many as 20 days. In fact, warm temperatures can lead to faster growth for crops, pro- vided that some form of artificial irrigation is present. "This leads to what I'd call a 'false bumper crop' where you get a large harvest and an oversupply," John Paul Cauchi, a specialist in environmental health at the University of Malta. Even growers who spoke to MaltaToday confirmed this thesis, saying that they had had to sell their products at relatively low prices to remain competitive, making the cost of growing the crops almost completely un- profitable. "Rainfall this year has been very low, so far at levels usually quantified for a desert environment, with just about 215mm so far," Cauchi said, adding that this would un- doubtedly have implications for the agricul- ture sector as well as biodiversity. Data from the Met Office shows that with just 2.2 mm of rainfall in February (up until noon on 18th February), it was the driest February experi- enced in the past 30 years. January presented the country with a mere 28.2 mm of rainfall compared to the 49.4 mm last year and 58.4 mm in 2014. "The agricultural sector therefore is in such a state where farmers have to constantly re- sort to underground water," Cauchi said, pointing at a very pertinent problem. "These aquifers are already dangerously depleted and they are a very slowly-renew- ing resource, so as this water is taken up, it becomes more salinated (due to seawater perfusion, for example)." The result of this excessive use means Mal- ta's fields can become increasingly saline as more sea water enters the aquifers, needing more water to wash out salt, and subsequently becom- ing a never-ending cycle that severely depletes the quality of the fields and soil. The absence of rainfall fur- ther exacerbates this already depleted ground water reserve. Water treatment engineer Marco Cremona said that un- derground water sup- plies were being further exacerbated by the lack of rainfall, but that the effect would be felt in the long- term rather than immedi- ately. "The winter season is often a period of rest for aquifers be- cause farmers no longer need to pump water given the pres- ence of rain, however, this year, water pumping went on aggressively throughout the year," he said. It could take water 40 years to travel all the way to the aquifers, but the absence of rain, and continuous extraction of water from aq- uifers means there will be no replenishment whatsoever during the year. "Of course the shameful state of ground water is not just due to rainless winters," Cremona said, add- ing that there were ways to undercut the ef- fects of the dryness if people were willing to do so. "The truth is that people do not care about this tragedy, because they cannot see it, given that it is happening underground," he said. So while places like Australia and California have introduced hosepipe bans to counter droughts, Malta "is not even mar- ginally close to having such water policies, particularly because people couldn't see the aquifers getting progressively emptier and more polluted," Cremona complained. "Not only are we far away from an effec- tive management policy, but roundabouts and parks are being covered by turf which requires quite some attention and water, however pleasing to the eye they may be." While the government had promised the completion of drainage polishing plants for water to be re-used for agriculture and landscaping purposes, Cremona says this expensive facility could end up exacerbating the problem because it needs to be accom- panied by a ban on extracting ground water, introducing quotas and pricing extraction. "If you simply add another 7,000 tonnes of water to the mix, without controlling borehole and aquifer use, then you are merely decreasing the value of water." Similarly, Cauchi criticized the lack of metering and costing of water extraction. "The future of agriculture might be somewhat bleak if people and even those involved in agriculture themselves were not willing to change. Some simple adaptations in- clude using pipe irrigation, bore- hole regulation and increasing the price of water." Farmers can, for example, look at alterna- tive crops to plant that are more drought resistant. "We can also explore alternative farming methods, such as agroforestry, which would have a long-term beneficial ef- fect in Malta as it also increases biodiversity and afforestation." 130 120 110 100 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 Average rainfall for February and December, 2007-2016 February 202 186 171 155 140 124 109 93 78 62 47 31 16 0 December 2008 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 February December Water around the world California, USA Ban on washing off sidewalks or driveways, as well as watering landscaping. People also cannot wash cars with hoses that do not have shut-off nozzles. Hotels must post signs in each room offering guests the option to not have towels and linens washed daily. Offences are punishable by fines reaching up to $500 Saudi Arabia Although the country might not have much to impart by way of water conservation, given that its aquifers have been classified as almost completely dry, it has introduced drought tolerant grass and turf in parks and gardens. The turf, which looks just as healthy as ordinary grass, requires very little water and was designed to survive in desert areas. Australia Dual flush toilets, restrictions on watering lawns and using sprinkler systems, according to the dryness of the region, with limits on the frequency of use put in place, as well as bans on emptying and refilling swimming pools (allowing top ups instead) during particular periods, are some of the many measures used in one of the world's driest regions. Environmental public health specialist John Paul Cauchi Agronomist Charles Zahra Water treatment engineer Marco Cremona