Major rivers across Europe are at their lowest levels in years, and climate change will only make things worse for aquatic ecosystems. But allowing nature to take back control can help fix some of the damage. urope's intense summer heat waves have brought rivers across the continent to their lowest levels in years.

Major waterways like the Rhine, Danube and Po are warming and at critically low levels, threatening agriculture, commerce, drinking water and natural ecosystems. The European Drought Observatory has reported that nearly 50% of the continent is under a drought warning, with some analysts calling it in the worst in 500 years.
Lower levels aren't just bad news for our well-being — they're also detrimental to the health of rivers and lakes themselves, as well as the wildlife dependent on them.

When water levels fall, living space is restricted and plant and animal populations struggle to coexist, Jose Pablo Murillo, program officer at the Stockholm International Water Institute, told DW. Water quality declines, and ecosystems are disrupted.

And variations in both temperature and levels that are outside normal limits can "quickly increase the risk of drastic changes in the conditions of river and lake ecosystems," he said. READ Further from the source above