Italy's government are meeting to discuss emergency measures to counter the effects of an impending drought this summer. Weeks of dry weather have followed an unusually mild winter, and with a hot season predicted, water levels in the country's reservoirs and rivers are likely to continue to plummet.

For homeowners, this could mean cut-backs and even electricity blackouts, in a repetition of the events during the last heatwave in Italy in 2003, where overuse of air-conditioners left the country in darkness. In the longer-term, the shortages could affect the production of Italian staples like parmesan and prosciutto, as crops for feeding cattle wilt and fail.

Environment Minister Alfonso Pecoraro Scanio told La Repubblica that he is asking the Prime Minister for approval to promote a campaign designed to convince the Italian public to stop wasting water. Emergency measures are likely to be put in place following the governmental meeting.