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The LEO Network is a worldwide network of observers and experts that share their observations of environmental change.
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Irish summer heatwave sees Shannon record hottest day in over 70 years
Ireland's highest temperature was reported at Shannon Airport, Co Clare on June 28 reaching a high of 32.0 °C, its highest since 1946. The summer of 2018 will be remembered for the scorching heatwave and drought conditions that affected the whole country.
Shannon, Clare County, Ireland
The Irish Sun

Indigenous reindeer herders request emergency aid after drought, wildfires
The Swedish Saami Association is demanding a comprehensive aid package from Stockholm after a season of unprecedented drought and wildfire ravaged the country, including key reindeer grazing areas.
Swedish Sapmi
RCI | English

'No grass': Europe's livestock sector stricken by drought
Mediterranean countries long ago adapted their farming practices to little rain, but this year it is the north of Europe confronting a widespread drought that could see farmers having to send much of their herds to slaughter due to a lack of feed.
Northern Europe
YAHOO!

Reindeer herders say that if they don't get emergency funding, the animals may starve to death
“This is about the survival of the reindeer, and of Sami culture, which depends on them,” said Niila Inga, chair of the Swedish Sami Association.
Dikanäs, Västerbottens län, Sweden
Newsweek

Drought has volunteers walking Cowichan Lake area’s dry rivers and creek-beds looking for stranded fish fry
Plans are underway for raising the weir: a reflection of widespread concern, says Ken Traynor
Cowichan Lake Area, British Columbia, Canada
Lake Cowichan Gazette

Hot, arid summer guts a third of Sweden's cereal harvest
An unusually dry, hot summer means Sweden will see smaller yields of crops like wheat, barley and oats.
Stockholm, Stockholms län, Sweden
Eye on the Arctic

Race against time: Engineers use Apex River to refill Iqaluit's water supply
Stantec engineering designed the plans for pumping water from the Apex River to Lake Geraldine, the city's reservoir, which has lower water levels than in years past.
Iqaluit, Nunavut, Canada
CBC

Ship Creek Almost Dry
We have visited this creek every summer for 10 years, since 2008, including every August, and we have never seen the water this low.
Port Alberni, British Columbia, Canada
Phoebe Okey-Dobie, Theo Okolowicz, Tom Okey

Devastating drought, heat wave hammer farmers across northern Europe
Farmers in around a dozen countries across northern Europe — from Ireland to the Baltics — are grappling with a once-in-a-generation drought.
Nykøbing Sjælland, Zealand, Denmark
NBC News

Spring rains helped but parts of the Panhandle remain in drought
Southeast Alaska has dropped into drought conditions off and on for the past two or more years. Spring rains and snow melt helped refill lakes and reservoirs but a dry, hot July pushed the southern Panhandle into a deeper deficit.
Ketchikan, Alaska, United States
KTUU

New Maps Appear To Show Crimea Is Drying Up
According to Ukraine, vegetation in Crimea is drying up at record levels.
Kiev, Kyiv City, Ukraine
RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty

Drought in a rainforest? Yes
There are no tumbleweeds blowing through the streets of Southeast Alaska towns, but, the region has received quite a bit less precipitation than usual over the past nine months.
Ketchikan, Alaska, United States
KRBD

Southeast Alaska dries up in rare problem: a drought
If it sounds unusual to have a drought in a rainforest, it is. Low snow and little rain combined to deliver an almost unprecedented drought to southern
Juneau, Alaska, United States
Juneau Empire

Moderate to severe drought grips southern Manitoba
A dry winter exacerbated by a drier spring has left a wide swath of southern Manitoba in a state of moderate to severe drought, with much of the rest of the province classified as "abnormally dry."
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
CBC

Uruguay declares agricultural emergency due to drought
Uruguay's government on Wednesday declared an agricultural emergency in the drought-stricken northern part of the country and activated the Agricultural Emergency Fund (FAE), which provides no-interes. Uruguay declares agricultural emergency due to drought | World | English edition | Agencia EFE
Montevideo, Montevideo, Uruguay
EFE

Lake Washington is at its lowest in nearly three decades
Washington State's historic drought is pushing Lakes Washington and Union below the normal annual 20-foot mark for the first time in 28 years, and officials anticipate another foot drop.
Kirkland, Washington, United States
Kirkland Reporter

Pink Salmon (Oncorhynchus gorbuscha) Die-off, Jakolof Creek
Drought and high temperatures have dried the creek and caused thousands of pink salmon and Dolly Varden to die before they could spawn. The event raises questions about vulnerability of area salmon streams to climate change, and for local residents food security.
Jakolof Creek, Alaska, United States
Michael Opheim , Stephen Payton, Ryan Brubaker

Dry April triggers fire warnings in Anchorage
Anchorage, Alaska, United States

Dust, lack of snow conspire for poor air
Increasing winds may drive the air quality to become "unhealthy to hazardous," said a statement from Eileen Probasco, planning director with the Matanuska-Sustina Borough.
Anchorage Daily News

Alaska farmers scramble for hay
A one-two punch of mid-May snow followed by a six-week drought cut the supply of Alaska-grown hay from Homer to Fairbanks by a third to a half, state Division of Agriculture officials say.
Palmer, Alaska, United States
Anchorage Daily News

New England Drought
New Hampshire Public Radio's Dan Gorenstein reports the northeastern U.S. is experiencing one of the worst droughts in decades. New, deeper wells are in demand even though they cost thousands of dollars to drill. About 40 percent of New Hampshire residents get their water from private wells. Snow might replenish some of the wells, but water doesn't permeate frozen ground.
Concord, New Hampshire, United States
NPR.org

Tourist boats marooned, farm land parched as drought lowers Europe's rivers
Water levels in rivers, lakes and reservoirs across western Europe are running low, or even dry, amid the severest drought in decades which is putting stress on drinking water supplies, hampering river freight and tourism and threatening crop yields.
Villers-le-Lac, Bourgogne-Franche-Comté, France
Reuters

Quebec City rationing drinking water use after dry, hot August
Labeaume said there is less than a month’s worth of reserves left, which he called “concerning,” and it’s expected the current heat warning will stay in place for another few days, exacerbating the situation.
Québec, Quebec, Canada
CBC

Shenzhen faces historical drought with daily water shortage of 1 million cubic meters
The Dongjiang River, which provides more than 90 percent of the water consumed in Shenzhen, is facing the severest drought since 1963, the year with the lowest precipitation recorded in the city. The water level in the three main water reservoirs is now more than 55 percent lower than in previous years according to Zhang Jian'an, Shenzhen water resources authority official, media reported.
Shenzhen, Guangdong, China
Global Times

Kenow wildfire burns north through park and beyond, but Waterton townsite spared
Lashing at the western boundaries of Waterton Lakes National Park since Friday, the Kenow wildfire’s devastating journey across the continental divide tore a fiery path through the beloved southwestern Alberta park — mercifully sparing much of the townsite but broke north along the entrance highway.
Waterton Park, Alberta, Canada
calgaryherald

Lack of snow adds to training challenge for Yukon Quest musher
In less than a month, the Yukon Quest will get underway in Whitehorse. But one first-time entrant says she hasn't touched her dog sled at all yet, because of the unusual weather conditions.
Whitehorse, Yukon, Canada

Canadian Arctic city declares state of emergency over water shortage
The northern Canadian city of Iqaluit declared a state of emergency on Friday after scarce rain this year left water levels in the local Apex River at a four-decade low.
Iqaluit, Nunavut, Canada
Reuters

Norman Wells and Tulita, N.W.T., won't get barge deliveries this year
The N.W.T.'s Marine Transportation Services has announced it is cancelling barges to Norman Wells and Tulita due to low water levels.
Norman Wells, Northwest Territories, Canada

Dispersed across B.C., the Lytton First Nation aims to come back strong
Like many people in Lytton, council member John Haugen's not sure when he'll be able to settle back home. One thing he is certain about is that his people, those of the Lytton First Nation who have lived in the area for about 10,000 years, will continue living on their ancestral lands.
Lytton, British Columbia, Canada

Inuvik experienced one of its warmest, driest summers on record
It wasn’t part of your imagination if you thought it was warmer this summer in the Northwest Territories. Inuvik experienced its seventh warmest summer on record according to data from Environment and Climate Change Canada.
Inuvik, Northwest Territories, Canada

Growing sense of dread among Swedish farmers as dry weather continues
I am sad to see the crops on my fields being just brown and yellow instead of green. All the hard work we did this spring, it's almost for nothing..." dairy farmer Filip Nilsson told Radio Sweden.
Sweden

Fire bans in force across large parts of Sweden
Sweden has implemented fire bans across most of the country due to high, very high, or extremely high risk of wildfires caused by hot weather and dry conditions.
Sweden
Sveriges Radio

Water warning as reservoir levels hit 18-year low
Scottish Water says storage levels at some sites are at 66% amid one of the driest summers in 160 years.
Scotland, United Kingdom
BBC News

‘A lot of salmon died’: Ahousaht Guardians look to watershed restoration amid B.C.’s dangerously dry summer
B.C. drought exacerbating forestry damage to Bedwell River near Tofino as Ahousaht First Nation works to protect salmon, restore watershed.
Tofino, British Columbia, Canada
The Narwhal

Relentless heat wave and lack of rain scorching Saskatchewan crops
Crops across much of Saskatchewan are scorched, stunted and thin as they wither under the unrelenting heat wave blanketing Saskatchewan, according to the province's latest crop report.
Battleford, Saskatchewan, Canada

Nairobians Warned Over Looming Water Shortage
Murang’a County Director of Meteorology Paul Murage stated that the ongoing short rains are below average and expressed worries that the Ndakaini dam may not achieve full capacity by the end of the season. Following the low water volume residents in the city will experience water rationing in areas that are served by the dam as early as next year.
Nairobi, Kenya
Kenyans.co.ke

As Fort Simpson, N.W.T., ferry crossing opens for the season, low water levels worry mayor
Sean Whelly the mayor of Fort Simpson is worried that low water levels could impact the ferry’s ability to operate, potentially leaving the community isolated in the summer months.The water levels are the lowest he's ever seen at this time of year.
Fort Simpson, Northwest Territories, Canada

North Saskatchewan River Turns Blue
The river, which starts at the Saskatchewan Glacier in the Columbia Icefields and flows through to central Saskatchewan, is usually murky brown by the time it reaches Edmonton in summer. In recent weeks, however, the water has taken on the hues of Alberta's glacial lakes, thanks to dry, hot weather combined with maintenance at a major dam.
North Saskatchewan River, Alberta, Canada

Rhine River – Europe’s Second-Largest River – Runs Dry
Water levels at the chokepoint of Kaub, near Frankfurt, fell to 32 cm (13 inches) in depth on Monday, down from 42 cm (17 inches) last week. Ships, however, need around 1.5 m (5 feet) to be able to sail fully loaded.
Cologne, Languedoc-Roussillon-Midi-Pyrénées, France

‘It’s pretty dire’: Vancouver Island salmon under threat from climate change-induced droughts
Since the initial June to July heatwave shocked the Pacific Northwest, Heim says the Tsolum River Restoration Society has observed significantly fewer fish in the river, especially in its lower portions. Many of the remaining coho, which survived the heat wave, are suffering from diseases and fin rot as a result of heat stress.
Courtenay, British Columbia, Canada
The Narwhal

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