Italian authorities have ordered a halt to pumping water out of a lake near Rome following a prolonged drought.<br /><br />Acea, the utility firm which runs Rome’s water system, has said that two years of lower-than-average rainfall have dramatically reduced water levels in reservoirs feeding the city.<br /><br />“For months, weeks, the water level is falling. Now this drop has reached a dramatic percentage, dangerous to the lake itself,” explained Nicola Zingaretti, Lazio Governor. “So we took this measure that will come into operation in seven days time .” <br /><br />Earlier this month, the drinking fountains that dot the city were closed in an effort to safeguard supplies.<br /><br />Since then there has been no let up in above-average temperatures with 2017 likely to be one of the hottest years on record in Italy.<br />
