The 2022 drought needs to be a turning point for European drought risk management

Abstract. The 2022 European drought has underscored critical deficiencies in European water management. This paper explores these shortcomings and suggests a way forward for European drought risk management. In particular, we focus on four key aspects: the increasing drought risk, its spatial and temporal impacts, current management approaches, and how these differ across Europe. We base our findings on a continent-wide survey of water managers involved in responding to the 2022 drought. The survey collected 481 responses from 30 European countries and contained 19 questions on perceived sectorial impacts and the drought risk management practices implemented by the respondents' organizations. Information from the survey was supported with climate-related data on drought severity as quantified by the Standardised Precipitation Evapotranspiration Index, to offer a comprehensive overview of how extreme historical droughts are managed across Europe. Our findings reveal a consensus on the growing risk of drought, driven by droughts' rising frequency and intensity. While the 2022 event affected most of the continent, our findings show significant regional disparities in management capacity. In many countries – particularly those with agriculture-dominated economies – drought responses remain short-term and reactive, often leading to potentially maladaptive practices. Despite these challenges, we also observe a positive shift, with organizations showing increased awareness and preparedness. Hence, the lessons learnt from the 2022 event may provide an ideal opportunity to mainstream European-wide drought risk management. To seize this opportunity, we advocate for a European Drought Directive, to harmonize and enforce risk management policies across the continent. This directive should promote a systemic, integrated, and long-term risk management perspective. It should also set clear guidelines at the national and sub-national level, and for cross-boundary drought collaboration. This study and its companion paper, “From Crisis to Capacity: Institutional Preparedness and Response During the 2022 European Drought”, result from work carried out by the Drought in the Anthropocene network, an initiative of the International Association of Hydrological Sciences (IAHS).

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Publication Details

Journal
Natural hazards and earth system sciences
Published
2025-11-12
DOI
https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-25-4475-2025
Citations
10
Primary Topic
Hydrology and Drought Analysis
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
11.05

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The 2022 drought needs to be a turning point for European drought risk management

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article en
10 citations

Abstract

Abstract. The 2022 European drought has underscored critical deficiencies in European water management. This paper explores these shortcomings and suggests a way forward for European drought risk management. In particular, we focus on four key aspects: the increasing drought risk, its spatial and temporal impacts, current management approaches, and how these differ across Europe. We base our findings on a continent-wide survey of water managers involved in responding to the 2022 drought. The survey collected 481 responses from 30 European countries and contained 19 questions on perceived sectorial impacts and the drought risk management practices implemented by the respondents' organizations. Information from the survey was supported with climate-related data on drought severity as quantified by the Standardised Precipitation Evapotranspiration Index, to offer a comprehensive overview of how extreme historical droughts are managed across Europe. Our findings reveal a consensus on the growing risk of drought, driven by droughts' rising frequency and intensity. While the 2022 event affected most of the continent, our findings show significant regional disparities in management capacity. In many countries – particularly those with agriculture-dominated economies – drought responses remain short-term and reactive, often leading to potentially maladaptive practices. Despite these challenges, we also observe a positive shift, with organizations showing increased awareness and preparedness. Hence, the lessons learnt from the 2022 event may provide an ideal opportunity to mainstream European-wide drought risk management. To seize this opportunity, we advocate for a European Drought Directive, to harmonize and enforce risk management policies across the continent. This directive should promote a systemic, integrated, and long-term risk management perspective. It should also set clear guidelines at the national and sub-national level, and for cross-boundary drought collaboration. This study and its companion paper, “From Crisis to Capacity: Institutional Preparedness and Response During the 2022 European Drought”, result from work carried out by the Drought in the Anthropocene network, an initiative of the International Association of Hydrological Sciences (IAHS).

Natural hazards and earth system sciencesVol. 25(11)
Ştefan cel Mare University of Suceava (RO), Uppsala University (SE), Alfred-Wegener-Institut Helmholtz-Zentrum für Polar- und Meeresforschung (DE), Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute (SE), Norwegian Water Resources and Energy Directorate (NO), Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (ES), Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (DE), University of Strathclyde (GB), University of Oslo (NO), Utrecht University (NL), IHE Delft Institute for Water Education (NL), Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SE), University of Bristol (GB), University of Belgrade (RS), State Institution National Antarctic Scientific Center (UA), Institut National de Recherche pour l'Agriculture, l'Alimentation et l'Environnement (FR), UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (GB), Deltares (NL), Ukrainian Hydrometeorological Institute (UA), Czech Academy of Sciences, Global Change Research Institute (CZ), Institute of Environmental Assessment and Water Research (ES), Forum Réfugiés - Cosi (FR), Centre of Natural Hazards and Disaster Science (SE), Technische Universität Berlin (DE), Mendel University in Brno (CZ), Universitat de Barcelona (ES), Sapienza University of Rome (IT), Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (NL), Wageningen University & Research (NL), University of Bologna (IT), Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (ES), Stanford University (US)
Università degli studi di Bergamo, Ministerul Cercetării, Inovării şi Digitalizării, European Commission, University of Bristol, Universiteit Utrecht, Svenska Forskningsrådet Formas, Vetenskapsrådet, Uppsala Universitet, HORIZON EUROPE Framework Programme, Natural Environment Research Council
Openalex Percentile: Top 1%
Hydrology and Drought Analysis
11.05
DOIOpen Access PDFOpenAlex
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