THE WATER-ABUNDANCE OF RIVERS IN 2023

Abstract

Of the recent decades, 2023 was one of the most water-abundant years for Slovenian rivers. On average, about a third more water flowed through Slovenian rivers than usual. The water-abundance of all the Slo­venian rivers was above average, but the most water-abundant were the Pesnica and Savinja Rivers. By far the most water-abundant month of the year was August, when floods of an exceptional scale hit Slovenia. The peculiarity of this flood event was that the three largest Slovenian rivers, the Sava, Drava and Mura, as well as smaller rivers in their hinterlands, flooded simultaneously. The water-abundance of Slovenian rivers was as much as 3.7 times higher than is usual for August. Other above-average water-abundant months were January, May, July, October, November and December, while the least wet was September, when on average a third less water flowed through Slovenian rivers than usual. The karst fields were flooded for longer than usual: Cerkniško polje was flooded for almost ten months, and Planinsko polje for just under two months.