Shrinking Lake Mornos Reveals Lost Village, Underscoring Greece’s Climate Crisis
The receding waters of Lake Mornos, a vital water source for nearly half of Greece’s population, have unveiled the muddied remains of Kallio, a village submerged nearly 45 years ago, CNN reports.
After an unusually warm winter with minimal snowfall and a scorching summer marked by heatwaves and limited rainfall, the man-made lake has reached its lowest level in decades. Long stretches of cracked soil now surround the ruins of Kallio, which was flooded in 1980 to create a reservoir for Athens, located 200 kilometers away.
“This has never happened before,” said local resident Dimitris Giannopoulos, pointing to the once snow-capped Mount Giona, which saw no snow last winter.
Trees surrounding the lake are turning yellow due to lack of water.
Wells in the area are drying up, and surrounding villages, even those not reliant on the lake, experienced water cuts this summer. The local firefighter chief has warned of increased wildfire risk as the forests become drier.
Satellite images show the lake’s surface area has shrunk from 16.8 square kilometers in August 2022 to just 12.0 square kilometers this year. Water reserves at Lake Mornos and three other reservoirs supplying Athens have plummeted to 700 million cubic meters in August, compared to 1.2 billion cubic meters in 2022.
The state-run Athens water company EYDAP has begun supplementing the water network with additional sources.
