Sharjah24 - AFP: In the scorching heat, Felipe Elvira inspects the branches of his olive trees, planted as far as the eye can see on a dusty hillside in southern Spain.
"There are no olives on these. Everything is dry," the 68-year-old said.
He and his son own a 100-hectare (250-acre) olive farm in the southern province of Jaen in sun-drenched Andalusia, a region which produces the bulk of the country's olive oil.
But a severe drought gripping much of Spain threatens to shrivel their harvest this year.
"We are used to a lack of water, but not to this point," said Elvira.
The region used to get 800 litres (210 gallons) of rainfall per square metre, but is set to get around half that amount this year, he said.
"Every year it's worse," Elvira said.
Global warming is hitting Spain harder than most European nations.
The country has suffered three intense heatwaves since May, damaging crops already grappling with an unusually dry winter.
"Olive trees are very resistant to water scarcity," said Juan Carlos Hervas, an expert with the COAG farmers' union.
But when droughts become extreme, the trees "activate mechanisms to protect themselves. They don't die but no longer produce anything," he added.
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