Consequences of climate change increasingly felt by Croatian olive growers

The increasingly-pronounced effects of climate change are having a negative impact on Croatian olive growing, according to researchers at the University of Zagreb. Lidija Srnec, a meteorologist and head of the university’s climate monitoring department, said climate change in Croatia has resulted in heat waves becoming more frequent and lasting longer. She added that at least three heat waves this summer affected the country’s long-term drought and exacerbated a large number of wildfires. According to firefighting officials in the country, Croatia experienced 14,241 fires in the first 10 months of 2022, a 47-percent increase compared to the same period in 2021. Additionally, the amount of land burned by wildfires reached 56,540 hectares, a 135-percent increase compared to last year. Olive groves in Istria and Dalmatia, the country’s two most significant olive-growing regions, were among the areas burned this year. In addition to drought and fires, there is even greater concern ...