Record-breaking temperatures mean that water levels have seriously dropped throughout the drought-affected regions, and as a result, “hunger stones” from the 1600s have resurfaced in the Czech Republic’s Elbe River.
According to the Associated Press (AP),the stones, which date from 1616 or earlier, serve as a warning to prepare for the potential impact of major droughts.
NPR notes that a team of researchers wrote about the stone in a 2013 paper about the history of droughts in the Czech Republic.
It’s worth noting that, according to NPR, the hunger stones are seen more often now because of a dam on a tributary of the Elbe River, though the current water levels are still unusually low.
The Guardian reports that unusually high temperatures are hurting crops throughout northern and central regions in Europe.
Swedish farmers have seen only about 12 percent of the typical seasonal rainfall this past summer season.
The Guardian further states that the European Drought Observatory (EDO) describes the current drought trend as “an extensive and severe anomaly,” and recommends that farmers take steps to adapt to warmer climates.
The Guardian also notes that farmers who have invested in irrigation and diversified their crop varieties are better able to withstand the effects of rising temperatures.
The EDO is encouraging water suppliers to prepare “sustainable adaptation measures towards an increase in drought frequency and intensity in the future,” The Guardian further reports.
Dire warnings aside, there’s no doubt that the effects of climate change are severe.