After Greece's warmest winter and earliest heat wave on record, authorities are sounding the alarm over the risk of dire water shortages in the heat of the Mediterranean summer.
An officer gives water to a presidential guard member standing in front of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Syntagma Square, Athens, Greece, July 12, 2024. /CFP
"Would you like some water? Turn off the tap!" one public service announcement in Athens implores; another daily spot urges the capital's residents to not fill their bath all the way to the top.
Already, there are signs that habits may need to change.
At the beginning of July, water levels at the Mornos Reservoir around 200 kilometers west of Athens, the main water source for the Attica region surrounding the capital, were down 30 percent from the same period last year.
And overall reserves for Attica were down by nearly a quarter over the same period, according to the Athens Water Supply and Sewerage Company (EYDAP).
Home to more than a third of Greece's population, the region of 3.7 million inhabitants was recently placed on "yellow alert" by EYDAP, which urged people to reduce consumption to keep reserves at a sustainable level.
Across Greece's islands, which tend to rely on wells and desalination plants to meet water needs, the problem is even more acute.
Added pressure comes from the millions of tourists who flock to the country's beaches each summer, swelling the local populations.
A crowded beach in the Varkiza suburb, south of Athens, Greece, July 14, 2024. /CFP
On some islands suffering from over-tourism, the demand for water in summer "is sometimes 100 times greater than in winter," said Nikitas Mylopoulos, a professor of water resource management at the University of Thessaly.
Mylopoulos said the problem of mass tourism was being compounded by poor water management.
At the end of June, a month-long state of emergency was declared for the Dodecanese island of Leros.
The island's council noted malfunctions at the desalination plant, alleging "poor maintenance in the past."
Other islands threatened by water scarcity include Sifnos in the Cyclades, Chios in the north Aegean, and Lefkada and Corfu in the Ionian Sea.
Sifnos's mayor, Maria Nadali, has criticized "the over-consumption of water for swimming pools and watering large gardens."
On Lefkada, Michalis Makropoulos, a local resident and author, denounced a "deplorable" situation where "the water was cut off at the end of June for four consecutive days."
In a local newspaper article, he blamed the problem on "years of mismanagement by the municipal authorities" and the "uncontrolled development of tourism without adequate infrastructure."
The water shortfalls have been made worse by intense heat, which scientists said is at least in part a result of human-driven climate change.
The mildest Greek winter on record has been followed by higher average temperatures this spring.
Last month, the country's earliest-ever heat wave resulted in the hottest June since 1960, with temperatures reaching 43 degrees Celsius in many parts of the country.
The heat has also sparked an increase in wildfires, with over 1,000 recorded last month, more than double the number in the same month last year, authorities said.
The head of EYDAP, Charalambos Sachinis, said a "special plan" had been drawn up "to deal with extreme water shortages," including investments of around 750 million euros ($819 million).
Elissavet Feloni, a hydrologist at the National Technical University of Athens, said the company was also planning to tap Lake Yliki, around 85 kilometers northwest of Athens, as an additional emergency source alongside the main Mornos Reservoir.
"However, this is an energy-intensive solution because the water has to be pumped up, whereas the Mornos stream has a natural gradient," she said. "For better water management, a central body needs to be set up to develop a comprehensive approach to resources across the country."
(Cover: A tourist drinks water while standing near the Acropolis, Athens, Greece, July 12, 2024. /CFP)