Rome/Brussels, 23 August 2022 (dpa/MIA) — This year's European drought "appears to be the worst since at least 500 years," the European Commission said on Tuesday. "This is of course only a first assessment and we need to confirm this with final data at the end of the season," said commission spokesperson Johannes Bahrke, referring to research published on Monday. Nearly half of Europe is threatened by drought, according to a report by the commission's science and knowledge service (JRC). The report said that, as of August 10, 47% of Europe's territory had reached a warning level for drought, while 17% of surveyed regions are on full alert. Scarce rain and a number of heatwaves from May onward have affected river discharges and water levels widely across Europe. Reduced water volumes have also adversely affected the energy sector for both hydropower generation and cooling systems of other power plants. The drought has substantially reduced yields for summer crop harvests, with corn, soybeans and sunflowers most affected, the researchers said. "Soil moisture and vegetation stress are both severely affected," the report said, listing over a dozen countries where drought hazard has been increasing, including Germany, France and Britain. "The rest of Europe, already affected by drought, maintains stable severely dry conditions," it said. The situation is little better in the British isles. Deaths during the July heatwaves in both England and Wales were higher on average than the rest of the month, as reported by the Press Association (PA). English deaths peaked on July 19, the day England recorded a record temperature of 40 degrees. Overall, deaths were 7% higher in England during the heatwave periods, and 12% higher in Wales. Covid-19 deaths in both countries also peaked on exceptionally hot July days, increasing by 31% in England, according to the PA. Deaths which occurred during high temperature periods in England can be attributed to a combination of factors, and further investigation is required in order to understand these findings. The Brussels report said regions where conditions are worsening the most are those that were already affected by drought in spring 2022 – for example northern Italy, south-eastern France, and some areas in Hungary and Romania. Researchers are forecasting that conditions warmer and drier than normal are likely until November in the western Euro-Mediterranean region. "Recent precipitation (mid-August) may have alleviated drought conditions in some regions of Europe," the experts said. "However, in some areas, associated thunderstorms caused damages, losses, and may have limited the beneficial effects of precipitation," the researchers added.