Driven by climate change, the two Prespa lakes—Small and Great—are receding at an alarming pace, threatening the disappearance of the smaller one and putting the wider transboundary ecosystem at risk, scientists told Kathimerini.
The level of Great Prespa has fallen by 10 meters since 1985 and, in the past four decades, has lost a volume of water equal to three times that of Small Prespa.
“Small Prespa did not follow the same sharp decline as Great Prespa in previous years, partly because its water flow is controlled by a sluice gate, and partly because sediment had built up in the channel connecting the two lakes, preventing the water from escaping,” explains environmentalist Giorgos Katsadorakis.
This year, the lakes’ water level is close to its lowest point since 1990—a trend that, if it continues, will render them unusable for irrigation.
“As a result, Small Prespa gradually ended up 10 meters higher than Great Prespa. What does that mean? The Great Prespa no longer exerts the same pressure on the subsoil, and so the smaller lake has started to drain underground into the larger one. I estimate that within the next five years, Small Prespa will shrink from 48 sq. km to less than 20 sq. km—and that won’t be the end of it,” he warns.
Climate change has also disrupted local agriculture: last year, bean farmers harvested in February instead of October and are receiving state compensation for the third consecutive year due to minimal yields.
Just last week, the village of Psarades was declared in a state of emergency, as boat docks now sit on dry land—an alarming development that also endangers the region’s wildlife.
Source: Καθημερινή
Server Update
