1.1 Introduction: Why Governance for Drought
Resilience?
Drought and water scarcity are very visible and prominent problems in some areas
of the world. In Europe the south of the continent is very prone to drought, and
suffers great (economical) damages as a result of it. In Northwest Europe drought is
generally not recognized as a major problem. Water surplus—for instance in
flooding—receives much more attention and is generally the focus of water managers. However, even though drought may not be as visible as flooding, that does
not mean it does not exist. For instance, the heat wave and drought of summer 2003
caused the loss of thousands of human lives in Europe and had a financial impact of
13 billion euros (COPA COGECA 2003). Agricultural production declines as a
result of precipitation shortages, reduced groundwater levels and so on. Nature
areas suffer from drought as well, due to drops in groundwater levels, more competition for remaining water supplies and increasing eutrophication. Freshwater
management plays a vital role in both the supply–demand balance as well as the
effects drought has on water quality. Thus, drought and water scarcity in Europe
have an impact on agriculture, nature, freshwater—and as a result also impact the
economy as a whole and people’s health. In this book we will mostly discuss
‘drought’, but that is not to exclude water scarcity. Rather, we use ‘drought’ as
common denominator for both the issue of drought as well as water scarcity.
Drought can occur in virtually any climatic regime, in both high and low rainfall
areas. In contrast to aridity, which is a permanent feature of the climate and is
restricted to low rainfall areas, drought is a temporary water shortage condition
compared to an average situation. It is usually the consequence of a natural reduction
in the amount of rainfall received over an extended period of time, which can be
caused or aggravated by other climatic factors, such as high temperatures, high winds
or low relative humidity. Drought can also be induced by human factors, causing, for
instance, excessive demands over a supply–demand system. Following this, and
depending on the main causes or impacts, some definitions of droughts have been
proposed, which are usually grouped into four types (Wilhite and Glantz 1987):
• meteorological drought, which is mainly due to a long period of no or very low
rainfall;
• hydrological drought, which is characterized by river flows that are below
average;
• agricultural drought, which refers to a soil moisture deficit affecting crops;
• mega drought, which is a persistent and extended drought that lasts for a much
longer period than normal.
Additionally, some authors will also consider another type called ‘socioeconomic
drought’, which occurs when the demand for water exceeds the supply. Here, it may
be important to highlight the difference between drought (and drought impacts) and
water scarcity. Water scarcity and drought are two interrelated but distinct concepts.
Water scarcity may result from a range of phenomena, which may be produced by
2
N. Bressers et al.
Resilience?
Drought and water scarcity are very visible and prominent problems in some areas
of the world. In Europe the south of the continent is very prone to drought, and
suffers great (economical) damages as a result of it. In Northwest Europe drought is
generally not recognized as a major problem. Water surplus—for instance in
flooding—receives much more attention and is generally the focus of water managers. However, even though drought may not be as visible as flooding, that does
not mean it does not exist. For instance, the heat wave and drought of summer 2003
caused the loss of thousands of human lives in Europe and had a financial impact of
13 billion euros (COPA COGECA 2003). Agricultural production declines as a
result of precipitation shortages, reduced groundwater levels and so on. Nature
areas suffer from drought as well, due to drops in groundwater levels, more competition for remaining water supplies and increasing eutrophication. Freshwater
management plays a vital role in both the supply–demand balance as well as the
effects drought has on water quality. Thus, drought and water scarcity in Europe
have an impact on agriculture, nature, freshwater—and as a result also impact the
economy as a whole and people’s health. In this book we will mostly discuss
‘drought’, but that is not to exclude water scarcity. Rather, we use ‘drought’ as
common denominator for both the issue of drought as well as water scarcity.
Drought can occur in virtually any climatic regime, in both high and low rainfall
areas. In contrast to aridity, which is a permanent feature of the climate and is
restricted to low rainfall areas, drought is a temporary water shortage condition
compared to an average situation. It is usually the consequence of a natural reduction
in the amount of rainfall received over an extended period of time, which can be
caused or aggravated by other climatic factors, such as high temperatures, high winds
or low relative humidity. Drought can also be induced by human factors, causing, for
instance, excessive demands over a supply–demand system. Following this, and
depending on the main causes or impacts, some definitions of droughts have been
proposed, which are usually grouped into four types (Wilhite and Glantz 1987):
• meteorological drought, which is mainly due to a long period of no or very low
rainfall;
• hydrological drought, which is characterized by river flows that are below
average;
• agricultural drought, which refers to a soil moisture deficit affecting crops;
• mega drought, which is a persistent and extended drought that lasts for a much
longer period than normal.
Additionally, some authors will also consider another type called ‘socioeconomic
drought’, which occurs when the demand for water exceeds the supply. Here, it may
be important to highlight the difference between drought (and drought impacts) and
water scarcity. Water scarcity and drought are two interrelated but distinct concepts.
Water scarcity may result from a range of phenomena, which may be produced by
2
N. Bressers et al.