Pafos Press 29 December 2025
A clear message about the winter turn of the weather, as well as a harsh portrayal of climate reality, was sent by the former director of the Meteorology Department, Kleanthis Nikolaidis, from “Protoselido”, outlining with numbers, images and examples the depth of the crisis that Cyprus is experiencing.
As he explained, the next few days will be purely winter, as Cyprus has now passed the winter solstice. We are in winter, calendar-wise and essentially, with the length of the night gradually starting to shorten and the day to grow longer minute by minute until the vernal equinox in March. This change, he emphasized, does not negate the fact that the cold will intensify, with a drop in temperature, rains, storms and local snow in the mountains.
However, behind the “winter picture” lies a dramatic reality with the water sector. Kleanthis Nikolaidis described the state of the dams as tragic, noting that on December 23, the fullness was only 9.3%, when in the corresponding period last year it was 25.4%. The water that has been collected, as he described, is largely degraded, with greenery and mud, which requires additional treatment before being given to agriculture, in an agricultural sector that is already shrinking.
[Note, the translation feature sometimes makes a nonsense of place names - so the original Greek table is also shown]
Despite the rains recorded in recent weeks, the benefit for the dams was limited. Although in terms of monthly percentages, Cyprus reached approximately 85% of the normal rainfall for December, the heavy rains were spatially uneven. Areas such as Polis Chrysochous recorded up to 140-150% of normal rainfall, while Pentadaktylos received approximately 200 mm, but this did not translate into a substantial increase in reserves, as most of the rains were released on the coast and not in the dam catchment areas.
When asked whether the change in where the rains now fall should lead to new dams, the former director of the Meteorology Department was cautious. He recalled that the construction of dams is an extremely expensive and complex process and that in coastal areas, which have experienced enormous development, finding space and expropriations are becoming almost prohibitive.
He also made special reference to the geological phenomena that are intensifying, with the most typical example being the sinkholes that have been the subject of intense public debate in recent weeks. These are, as he explained, underground cavities created by the dissolution of gypsum or limestone rocks by water. In Turkey, where impressive images were recorded with huge sinkholes of tens of meters, the phenomenon is mainly associated with the over-pumping of groundwater in rural areas. Similar, but smaller-scale phenomena exist in Cyprus, in areas such as Perachori, Athienou, Tsakkileros, Larnaca, Levtymbou and Polemi, even within residential areas, with cracks in buildings and infrastructure as a warning sign.
The broader context, according to Kleanthis Nikolaidis, is the global climate crisis, which is now clearly reflected in the numbers. 2025 is setting a string of global temperature records, with January emerging as the warmest ever recorded globally and the summer months following the same upward trend. The oceans and seas are also experiencing record temperatures, which, he explained, explains why Cyprus is now receiving more rain on the coast, unlike in the past, when rain and snow in the mountains fed the dams.
In Cyprus, the signs are equally worrying. The hydrological year 2024-2025, which ended in late September, was recorded as one of the driest since 1878, with a total rainfall of just 312.5 millimeters. March 2025 was exceptionally dry, with only 21% of normal rainfall, while November also saw 41%, despite the fact that it is traditionally considered a rainy month. Accordingly, temperature records were broken, with January in Cyprus being characterized as the warmest ever recorded.
Climate change, he emphasized, is not an abstract concept but a natural hazard with tangible economic costs. From the fires in California with damages of tens of billions, to the deadly monsoon floods in Asia and the heat waves and fires in Europe, the consequences translate into loss of life, enormous expenses and destruction of natural wealth.
For Cyprus in particular, studies show that, if the course is not changed, the cost of climate change by 2050 could reach 29 billion euros, with a particular burden on sectors such as transport, energy, agriculture, livestock and tourism. On the contrary, a dynamic shift to renewable energy sources could dramatically reduce this cost, although – as he stressed – the atmosphere has a “memory” and the consequences cannot be completely eliminated.
In closing, Kleanthis Nikolaidis focused on the drought images that are now being recorded by satellites, with areas such as Kokkinochoria and the once fertile Morphou showing signs of severe degradation. The rise in temperature and the decrease in rainfall, he warned, mean a loss of national wealth and a change in the landscape as we knew it. And this, as he reiterated, is not a scenario of the future but a reality that is already unfolding before us.
