According to a report released by the joint research center of the European Commission on the 22nd, nearly two-thirds of Europe is suffering from drought or is at risk of drought. The drought in some areas has continued to worsen since August, affecting inland navigation, hydropower and agricultural harvest. The European drought observation website of the joint research center evaluates the degree of Drought Based on data such as rainfall, soil moisture and the level of light energy absorbed by plant photosynthesis. According to the monthly report released by this website on the 22nd, 47% of Europe is in drought warning state, that is, facing drought risk; 17% of the areas are in the state of drought warning, that is, they have fallen into drought, higher than 11% in July. The report said that since the beginning of this year, the severe drought has affected many parts of Europe, and the drought has further expanded and worsened in early August. In mid August, local rainfall eased the drought in some parts of Europe, but in some areas, thunderstorms caused property losses. The report shows that the rainfall in Portugal, Spain, southern France, central Italy, Switzerland, southern Germany and most parts of Ukraine in the past three months is less than that in the previous year. The report predicts that the drought may reduce the production of many crops in Europe this year. For example, the European corn production this year is 16% lower than the average level of the previous five years, and the soybean production is 15%. The joint research center also said that the current drought has caused the water level of some rivers in Europe to drop, affecting inland navigation. For example, the number of ships transporting coal and oil through the Rhine River has decreased. The report says that the "drought risk" will increase in most areas of Italy, Spain, Portugal, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, Ireland, Luxembourg, Romania and Hungary, as well as in European countries such as Britain, Serbia, Ukraine and Moldova, which are not part of the European Union. The report predicts that by November this year, the European region adjacent to the Mediterranean will be "warmer and drier" than the same period in previous years; From August to October, some parts of Europe may receive normal rainfall, but it may not be enough to fully recover from the rainfall "deficit" of more than half a year; The drought in the Alps may ease, but parts of Spain, Portugal and Croatia may continue to experience "drier than usual" weather. Meteorologists of the joint research center of the European Commission recently warned that the drought in Europe in 2018 was the most serious in the past 500 years, but this year's drought is likely to exceed the level in 2018. (news agency)