“According to the PDSI – 'Palmer Drought Severity Index', in February, there was a worsening of drought intensity in relation to previous months, with about 29.3% of the territory in the severe drought class and 66.2 % in the extreme dry class”, reads the diploma.

The entire territory is therefore in meteorological drought, with 95.5% being in a situation of severe or extreme drought.

The “irregularity of agrometeorological conditions” in Portugal contributed to this, highlighting a “accentuated deficit of accumulated precipitation”, as well as an average value of the air temperature being above normal.

Since the end of 2021, “there has been a decrease in the volume of storage in most of the river basins, and it should be noted that this entire hydrological year is characterised by recording total storage below average, due to the occurrence of reduced inflows to reservoirs”, resulting from little or no precipitation”.

In total, more than 260 municipalities are recognised as being in a situation of severe or extreme drought.