Earth Science News
DISASTER MANAGEMENT
EU chief offers 400 mn euros to help flood-hit Slovenia
EU chief offers 400 mn euros to help flood-hit Slovenia
by AFP Staff Writers
Ljubljana (AFP) Aug 9, 2023

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Wednesday offered 400 million euros from the bloc's solidarity fund as part of a package to help flood-hit Slovenia.

And she made it clear that, in her view, climate change had played a role in the disaster.

Four Slovenians and two Dutch tourists died in last week's flooding, which also flooded tens of thousands of houses.

"We will make accessible 400 million euros, 100 million of them still this year and 300 million euros next year" from the solidarity fund, von der Leyen told reporters after touring affected areas.

"It was heartbreaking to see the devastation that the rain and the flooding and the mudslides have caused," von der Leyen said.

Slovenia could also request 2.7 billion euros from the EU's "Next Generation" fund, she said.

In addition, 3.3 billion euros of cohesion funds already allocated to the country until 2027 could be repurposed.

Von der Leyen was speaking at a joint news conference with Slovenian Prime Minister Robert Golob.

"Several tens of thousands of houses have been flooded and several thousands of families are in despair today wondering how they will survive the next weeks and months," Golob said.

He urged the EU Commission to release the funds as soon as possible.

Golob has described rains and flooding that hit two-thirds of the Alpine country of two million as its worst natural disaster since independence over three decades ago.

- Climate change blamed -

The flash floods and landslides that began Thursday submerged large swathes of central and northern Slovenia, cutting off access to villages and disrupting traffic.

Clean-up operations are continuing with the help of neighbouring countries.

The government is still assessing the damage, but it says it could come to several billions of euros -- up from an earlier estimate of half a billion.

Streets in the town of Crna na Koroskem -- that were cut off for several days in northern Slovenia -- were still covered in mud on Wednesday. Bulldozers were clearing earth and gravel from the river banks and roads.

"Most likely there will be more situations (natural disasters) like this in the future, and we should prepare," said Golob.

"Certainly in this natural disaster, climate change played a role without any question," said von der Leyen.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is unequivocal about the impact of human activity on global warming.

It recently noted that climate change is already affecting many weather and climate extremes in every region across the globe.

Related Links
Bringing Order To A World Of Disasters
A world of storm and tempest
When the Earth Quakes

Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters
Tweet

RELATED CONTENT
The following news reports may link to other Space Media Network websites.
DISASTER MANAGEMENT
Little warning and 'huge' losses, say China flood victims
Zhuozhou, China (AFP) Aug 9, 2023
Villagers in northeastern China told AFP that the losses from recent flooding were "huge", a week after the heaviest rains Beijing has ever seen triggered widespread flooding in the region. Zhuozhou, in Hebei, was blanketed by brown water in early August, with some reports suggesting the province shouldered the burden of a government decision to divert the deluge away from the capital. The shells of cars and mountains of furniture caked in mud lay in front of shops in the village of Sanbuqiao, t ... read more

DISASTER MANAGEMENT
Moroccan navy rescues 60 migrants in Atlantic

EU chief offers 400 mn euros to help flood-hit Slovenia

Little warning and 'huge' losses, say China flood victims

At least 16 killed in landslide in Georgia

DISASTER MANAGEMENT
Studying rainforests from the skies - radar technology measures biomass

Umbra achieves Commercial SAR milestone with 16-cm resolution

New method simplifies the construction process for complex materials

Sensing and controlling microscopic spin density in materials

DISASTER MANAGEMENT
Biden to host Australian PM at White House

Land and sea efforts to save reefs must work together: study

Israel's pioneering use of water 'to the last drop'

Key Spanish lagoon dries out due to drought, overexploitation

DISASTER MANAGEMENT
Telecommunications cable used to track sea ice extent in the Arctic

Antarctica vulnerable to extreme events

'Mighty Bad Land': A tale of danger and discovery in West Antarctica

Extreme cooling ended the first human occupation of Europe

DISASTER MANAGEMENT
Wine grape disease spotted from skies above California

US orange juice prices hit record after storms, crop disease

NASA data helps Bangladeshi farmers save water, money, energy

China to remove tariffs on Australian barley as ties improve

DISASTER MANAGEMENT
Waiting to go home: 48,000 evacuated in Myanmar floods

Child among three dead in Guinea flood

China rains death toll rises to 78 as new storm approaches

Two dead, 16 missing in north China mudslide: state media

DISASTER MANAGEMENT
S.Africa should tackle 'environmental racism': UN expert

Top U.S. official holds 'frank, difficult' talks with coup leadership in Niger

Niger's coup leadership closes airspace as deadline to release president expires

Opposition mounts in Nigeria over possible Niger intervention

DISASTER MANAGEMENT
A climate-orchestrated early human love story

Just 5000 steps can save your life

Indigenous groups call for bold steps at Amazon summit

Workers less productiv, make more typos in afternoon and especially on Fridays

Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters




The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.