This is the worst such drought in Russia for 40 years, presidential adviser on climate Alexander Bedrizkiy said. Chelyabinsk region has been experiencing temperatures of 30 – 35 degrees Celsius (86 – 95 Fahrenheit) since early June and has had very little rainfall. The Russian Ministry of Agriculture says a state of emergency has been declared in nine agricultural areas.
This is the worst such drought in Russia for 40 years, presidential adviser on climate Alexander Bedrizkiy said. In the photo: Chelyabinsk region has been experiencing temperatures of 30 – 35 degrees Celsius (86 – 95 Fahrenheit) since early June and has had very little rainfall. The Russian Ministry of Agriculture says a state of emergency has been declared in nine agricultural areas.
According to the preliminary information, about 518 000 hectares of sown areas have been damaged, including 430 000 hectares of crops. In the photo: ravens on a dried out field. A state of emergency was declared in the Uvelsky district because of the draught.
Currently only around 50 percent of the necessary food supplies are available in Chelyabinsk region. Only 53 percent of hay and 35 percent of seed areas have survived the drought. 120 000 tons of hay and 300 000 tons of haylage have been lost. In the photo: rams on a dried out field.
Today there was a heat wave in 14 districts, including Tatarstan, Bashkortostan, and the Orenburg, Saratov and Samara regions. In the photo: a crack on a dried out field in Chelyabinsk region
Because of the draught in the central districts, about 9 million hectares of sown areas and about 48 seeded areas have been destroyed. Agricultural producers say they are unable to repay their loans because of the crop failures. In the photo: a dried out riverbed in Uvelsky district, Chelyabinsk region.
Russia has not seen such a severe draught since 1972. In the photo: A sagebrush plant on a dried out field in Uvelsky district, Chelyabinsk region.
Chelyabinsk region sent an appeal to the Russian government asking for around 4 million rubles to compensate for the losses from the drought. In the photo: dry grass on a field in Uvelsky district, Chelyabinsk region.
The money will mostly go to the livestock industry as there is a severe lack of serial feed, the Chelyabinsk region Agricultural minister said. In the photo: cows grazing on a dried out field.
It’s impossible to save all of the livestock because we only have 30% of the feed required, the minister said. In the photo: cracks on the ground on the dried field in the Uvelsky district, the Chelyabinsk region.
Cereal prices in the region have soared as a result of the drought. A ton of grain is increasing in value by about 100 rubles ($3) a week.
In the photo: cracks on the ground in the dried out field in the Uvelsky district, Chelyabinsk region.
In the photo: cracks on the ground in the dried out field in the Uvelsky district, Chelyabinsk region.
Experts say consumers should not worry as the proportion of grain in the cost of a loaf of bread is only 9 percent and there are enough cereals either for internal consumption or for export. In the photo: cracks on the ground on a dried out field in Uvelsky district, Chelyabinsk region.
The last severe drought to affect the most important agricultural areas in Russia occurred in 1975. Then the harvest decreased by more than a third in comparison with the previous year. In the photo: cracks on the ground on a dried out field in Uvelsky district, Chelyabinsk region.
