Greece’s rivers running dry, lakes disappearing
Kathimerini reaches out to experts to find out why Doirani, Vistonida and Pikrolimni and the Gallikos in the country’s north are dwindling

The sole resident of Kerasia, at 600 meters on Mount Papikio in Rodopi, has been observing the changes to the village’s river since the 1980s. “We used to hear the Aspropotamos roar. Now it’s gone quiet. The water level has dropped from a meter to 8-10 centimeters,” retired lawyer Sotiris Poupouzis tells Kathimerini, speaking about one of several rivers that feed Lake Vistonida in neighboring Xanthi.

The Aspropotamos is just one of dozens of water bodies in northern Greece sounding the alarm, victims of reduced rainfall, less snowmelt and higher temperatures.

The vice-president of the association of gas station owners and fuel traders, Giorgos Asmatoglos, has predicted the price of petrol will reach 2€ / litre over Easter.

Greece in a losing battle to tumbling birth-rate, small villages have it worst

Much like the rest of Europe, Greece is struggling with decreasing birth-rates and experts say it will be hard to reverse the trend.

According to Reuters, recent data shows that the record low numbers of births are driven by the debt crisis that led to years of austerity, emigration and changed attitudes among the young.

2022 saw the lowest number of births in 92 years and preliminary unofficial data indicate another drop for last year.

Greece’s fertility rate is one of the lowest in Europe with some villages having not recorded a single birth in years.