Heat and drought are forcing Europe to face the growing pains of climate change

Record heat and drought that are hurting European farmers, energy companies and insurers are predicting even faster climate change for the continent, with scientists warning that feedback from the dry Earth is likely to lead to dangerously high temperatures again this year.

The European Union's latest climate assessment, released Thursday by the Copernicus climate change service, shows how scientists and policymakers are preparing to adapt to life on a hotter planet. The European bloc is spending billions of euros on new Earth-observing space missions aimed at helping its economy of 450 million people safeguard against shrinking arable land, shrinking water levels and more forest fires.

Hot, dry weather means reduced harvests that worsen food insecurity, and river levels so low that they cripple transportation and force power plants to shut down. France is already introducing so-called sobriety measures, while the European Commission is considering other ways to conserve suddenly scarce water resources. "We are really moving into uncharted territory where our collective experience will be less useful than it was a few decades ago," said Carlo Buontempo, director of the Copernicus programme. The Copernicus program uses billions of measurements from satellites, ships, aircraft and weather stations around the world for its monthly and seasonal forecasts. Together with the European Space Agency, the Copernicus program plays a central role in the EU's €16 billion effort to get ahead of climate change through accurate predictions. It is already the largest provider of climate data in the world. But while better forecasts can help farmers decide to grow drought-tolerant crop varieties or engineers plan for better irrigation, they don't dull the economic pain of climate change when it happens. Record high summer temperatures - 1.4 degrees Celsius above the historical average - decimated crops in France and Central Europe last year. Global climate-related losses have risen to an estimated $270 billion. A dry spell is currently wilting crops and delaying planting in some of Europe's leading growers, risking a further rise in food inflation. "We have already seen several reports of water shortages in Mediterranean countries," said Samantha Burgess, Deputy Director of the Copernicus Programme. "Unless we have significant spring rainfall, the likelihood of below-average water availability is likely to continue." (JONATHAN TIRONE)