Communication report regarding the incidences of drought conditions in Poland

The Institute of Soil Science and Plant Cultivation – State Research Institute, in accordance with the Act of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, has developed the climatic water balance values for all 2477 Polish municipalities (gminas) and, based on soil categories, calculated the current risk of agricultural drought.

In the eighth reporting period, i.e. from June 1st to July 31st, 2021 the average value of Climatic Water Balance (CWB), which is the basis for assessing the risk of agricultural drought, was negative and equalled -111.9 mm. The average CWB value has decreased by 23.9 mm in relation to the previous reporting period (May 21st – July 20th).

The highest water deficit, ranging from -200 to -259 mm, was still recorded in the Białogard Plain, the central part of the Slovincian Coast, the Damnica Plateau, the Kashubian Lake District, the Vistula Fens, in the eastern part of the Gorzów Basin, central part of the Greater Poland Lake District, and in the eastern part of the Greater Poland Lowland and Volhynian Polesie, in the northern part of the Volhynian Upland and in the Rybnik Plateau. Lower deficit was recorded in the Przedbórz Upland, the Kielce Upland, in the western and eastern part of the South Pomeranian Lake District, western part of the Southern Masovia Hills, in the Ełk Lake District, southern and northern part of the North Podlasie Lowland, in Lublin Polesie, the Silesian Lowland, and northern part of the Sandomierz Basin, where it ranged from -120 to -199 mm. In the rest of the country, water deficit was less severe: from -50 mm to -119 mm.

Based on the current humidity conditions, IUNG-PIB states the occurrence of agricultural drought in the area of Poland.

Agricultural drought occurred in the following voivodeships:

• Pomorskie,
• Zachodniopomorskie,
• Wielkopolskie,
• Mazowieckie,
• Kujawsko-Pomorskie,
• Śląskie,
• Warmińsko-Mazurskie,
• Lubelskie,
• Podkarpackie,
• Łódzkie,
• Świętokrzyskie,
• Lubuskie,
• Opolskie,
• Podlaskie,
• Dolnośląskie,
• Małopolskie.

Agricultural drought occurred in eleven crops:

• Maize for grain,
• Maize for silage,
• Fruit shrubs,
• Legumes,
• Ground vegetables,
• Spring cereals,
• Tobacco,
• Strawberries,
• Winter cereals,
• Hops,
• Potato,
• Fruit trees,
• Sugar beet.

In the current sixty-day reporting period, agricultural drought was recorded in maize for grain. It occurred in 1045 municipalities (42.19% of all municipalities in Poland). In relation to the previous reporting period, the number of municipalities affected by agricultural drought has increased by 22.13%. Drought occurred in the area of 10.63% of arable land, which is 7.87% more than in the previous reporting period. Detailed data on drought occurrence in maize for grain in particular voivodeships are presented in table 1.

Table 1. Agricultural drought in maize for grain

Agricultural drought was also recorded in maize for silage. It occurred in 1045 municipalities (42.19% of all municipalities in Poland). In relation to the previous reporting period, the number of municipalities affected by agricultural drought has increased by 22.13%. Drought occurred in the area of 10.63% of arable land, which is 7.87% more than in the previous reporting period. Detailed data on drought occurrence in maize for silage in particular voivodeships are presented in table 2.

Table 2. Agricultural drought in maize for silage

Agricultural drought occurred in fruit shrubs as well. It was recorded in 791 municipalities (31.93% of all municipalities in Poland). In relation to the previous reporting period, the number of municipalities affected by agricultural drought has increased by 16.99%. Drought occurred in the area of 9.99% of arable land, which is 7.49% more than in the previous reporting period. Detailed data on drought occurrence in fruit shrubs in particular voivodeships are presented in table 3.

Table 3. Agricultural drought in fruit shrubs

Agricultural drought was also recorded in legumes. It occurred in 681 municipalities (27.49% of all municipalities in Poland). In relation to the previous reporting period, the number of municipalities affected by agricultural drought has increased by 16.79%. Drought occurred in the area of 7.53% of arable land, which is 6.17% more than in the previous reporting period. Detailed data on drought occurrence in legumes in particular voivodeships are presented in table 4.

Table 4. Agricultural drought in legumes

Agricultural drought occurred also in ground vegetables. It was recorded in 347 municipalities (14.01% of all municipalities in Poland). In relation to the previous reporting period, the number of municipalities affected by agricultural drought has increased by 11.59%. Drought occurred in the area of 2.95% of arable land, which is 2.78% more than in the previous reporting period. Detailed data on drought occurrence in ground vegetables in the particular voivodeship are presented in table 5.

Table 5. Agricultural drought in ground vegetables.

Agricultural drought occurred also in spring cereals. It was recorded in 321 municipalities (12.96% of all municipalities in Poland). In relation to the previous reporting period, the number of municipalities affected by agricultural drought has increased by 4.85%. Drought occurred in the area of 2.43% of arable land, which is 1.46% more than in the previous reporting period. Detailed data on drought occurrence in spring cereals in particular voivodeships are presented in table 6.

Table 6. Agricultural drought in spring cereals

In this reporting period, agricultural drought occurred in tobacco. It was recorded in 321 municipalities (12.96% of all municipalities in Poland). In relation to the previous reporting period, the number of municipalities affected by agricultural drought has increased by 10.58%. Drought occurred in the area of 3.29% of arable land, which is 3.09% more than in the previous reporting period. Detailed data on drought occurrence in tobacco in the particular voivodeships are presented in table 7.

Table 7. Agricultural drought in tobacco

In this reporting period, agricultural drought was also recorded in strawberries. It occurred in 186 municipalities (7.51% of all municipalities in Poland). In relation to the previous reporting period, the number of municipalities affected by agricultural drought has increased by 5.9%. Drought occurred in the area of 0.98% of arable land, which is 0.91% more than in the previous reporting period. Detailed data on drought occurrence in strawberries in particular voivodeships are presented in table 8.

Table 8. Agricultural drought in strawberries

Agricultural drought was also recorded in winter cereals. It occurred in 179 municipalities (7.23% of all municipalities in Poland). In relation to the previous reporting period, the number of municipalities affected by agricultural drought has increased by 3.84%. Drought occurred in the area of 0.84% of arable land, which is 0.59% more than in the previous reporting period. Detailed data on drought occurrence in winter cereals in particular voivodeships are presented in table 9.

Table 9. Agricultural drought in winter cereals

Agricultural drought was also recorded in hops. It occurred in 179 municipalities (7.23% of all municipalities in Poland). In relation to the previous reporting period, the number of municipalities affected by agricultural drought has increased by 6.99%. Drought occurred in the area of 0.88% of arable land. Detailed data on drought occurrence in hops in particular voivodeships are presented in table 10.

Table 10. Agricultural drought in hops

In this reporting period, agricultural drought was also recorded in potatoes. It occurred in 165 municipalities (6.66% of all municipalities in Poland). Drought occurred in the area of 0.8% of arable land. Detailed data on drought occurrence in potatoes in particular voivodeships are presented in table 11.

Table 11. Agricultural drought in potatoes

Agricultural drought occurred in fruit trees as well. It was recorded in 110 municipalities (4.44% of all municipalities in Poland). In relation to the previous reporting period, the number of municipalities affected by agricultural drought has increased by 3.96%. Drought occurred in the area of 0.47% of arable land, which is 0.46% more than in the previous reporting period. Detailed data on drought occurrence in fruit trees in particular voivodeships are presented in table 12.

Table 12. Agricultural drought in fruit trees

In this reporting period, agricultural drought was also recorded in sugar beet. It occurred in 35 municipalities (1.41% of all municipalities in Poland). Drought occurred in the area of 0.26% of arable land. Detailed data on drought occurrence in sugar beet in particular voivodeships are presented in table 13.

Table 13. Agricultural drought in sugar beet

This year’s June was warmer than the multiannual norm by 1-3°C. The highest temperatures (above 20°C) were recorded in the area near Sandomierz, in the central part of the Masovian Lowland and in the Greater Poland Lake District, the Greater Poland Lowland and the southern part of the Silesian Lowland. The lowest temperatures occurred in Pogórze, from 14 to 18°C. In the rest of the country temperatures ranged from 18 to 20°C.

In the first decade of July it was the warmest in the east of Poland, in the Carpathian Piedmont and the Sandomierz Basin, where temperature exceeded 21°C. The lowest temperatures were recorded in the mountains, from 14 to 16°C. In the rest of the country temperatures ranged from 17 to 21°C. In the second decade of the month, the highest temperature exceeding 23°C was recorded in Lublin Polesie. The lowest temperatures occurred in the Sudetes, the Sudeten Foothills, the Western Beskidian Piedmont and in the Western Beskids, ranging from 16 to 20°C. In the rest of the country temperatures ranged from 20 to 23°C.

In the third decade of July, in the vast majority of the country temperatures exceeded 21°C. Lower temperature was recorded in the Lake Districts: Pomeranian, Iława, Lithuanian and in the eastern part of the Masurian Lake District; in the Silesian-Łużyce Lowland, in the eastern part of the North Podlasie Lowland and in the Uplands: Przedbórz and Woźniki-Wieluń, where it ranged from 17 to 21°C.

In June, as in May, precipitation was highly diversified. Precipitation values in the range of 40-80% were recorded in Pogórze, in the Silesian Lowland, the Pomeranian Lake District, the Masovian Lowland, and the Chełmno-Dobrzyń Lake District. Precipitation values within the multiannual norm were recorded in the Lublin Upland, Polesie, the Lesser Poland Upland, and in the northern part of Kraków- Częstochowa Upland. Precipitation above the 120% of the norm occurred in the Lubusz Land and in the western part of the Greater Poland Lake District.

In the first decade of July, the lowest precipitation values (below 15 mm) were recorded in the northern part of Lublin Polesie, in the Volhynian Upland, the eastern part of the Sandomierz Basin, in the Silesian Lowland and the Kraków-Częstochowa Upland. The highest values, from 70 to 110 mm, were recorded in the Masurian Lake District, the North Podlasie Lowland, in the central part of the Sandomierz Basin, in the western part of the Lublin Upland, in the North Masovian Lowland and the Iława Lake District. In the rest of the country precipitation ranged from 15 to 70 mm.

In the second decade of July the highest precipitation was recorded in the central part of the Western Beskidian Piedmiont and the western part of the Masovian Lowland (above 75 mm). The lowest precipitation values (below 25 mm) were recorded in the Lublin Upland, Polesie, the South Podlasie Lowland, the Silesian Lowland, the Masurian Lake District, the Coastland, the Pomeranian Lake District, in the central part of the Greater Poland Lake District and in the Lubusz Land. In the rest of the country precipitation ranged from 25 to 75 mm.

In the third decade of the month, the lowest precipitation (below 10 mm) was recorded in the Lake Districts: Pomeranian, Greater Poland, Lubusz, Chełmno-Dobrzyń, in the western part of the Silesian Lowland, the North Podlasie Lowland and in the area connecting the Przedbórz and Woźniki-Wieluń Uplands on the one side with the South Greater Poland Lowland and the Southern Masovia Hills on the other. The highest precipitation was recorded in the Lithuanian Lake District, in the eastern part of the North Podlasie Lowland, in Western Polesie, the Sandomierz Basin, central part of the Central Masovian Lowland and in the south of Poland, ranging from 30 to more than 50 mm. In the rest of the country precipitation ranged from 10 to 30 mm.

In this sixty-day reporting period, from June 1st to July 31st, 2021, the water deficit values have increased across the country (on average by 23.9 mm) in relation to the previous reporting period. Such humidity conditions resulted in agricultural drought occurrence in 16 voivodeships in Poland.

Definitely the highest water deficit was identified in the Pomorskie, Zachodniopomorskie, and Wielkopolskie voivodeships, where drought affected 13 crops. Slightly less severe drought occurred in the Mazowieckie, Śląskie, Kujawsko-Pomorskie, Warmińsko-Mazurskie, Lubelskie, and Podkarpackie voivodeships, where drought was recorded in 11-12 crops. Drought occurred also in the Łódzkie, Świętokrzyskie, Lubuskie, Opolskie, and Podlaskie voivodeships, in seven crops. Whilst in the Dolnośląskie and Małopolskie voivodeships water shortages caused drought conditions in four crops.

Executive Director

Prof. dr hab. Wiesław Oleszek

Report prepared by: Dr hab. Andrzej Doroszewski, prof. IUNG-PIB, Dr hab. Rafał Pudełko, Dr Katarzyna Żyłowska, Dr Jan Jadczyszyn, Mgr Piotr Koza, Mgr Anna Jędrejek, Mgr Małgorzata Kozak, Adrian Matczuk