The drought that plagues Mexico extends over much of the territory to varying degrees. An intense heat wave and lack of rain in recent months have worsened the situation that has already hit the interior of Mexico and caused water shortages and robberies in some states in the north and northwest of the country.
About 80% of the territory suffers some degree of drought as reflected until April 30 by the Monitor of the National Water Commission (Conagua), the body that monitors this phenomenon in Mexico.
The high temperatures do not go down and that, together with the lack of rain, worsens the situation of the headquarters in the country. Conágua reported that the thermometer reaches between 40 and 45 degrees Celsius in 20 of the 32 states. Meanwhile, there is a rainfall deficit close to 23% in relation to the national historical value for the same period, according to the agency.
The drought hits the north and northwest states hardest: Coahuila, Chihuahua, Nuevo León and Durango are located between intense orange, red and brown within the map that reflects the degree of dryness that the country is experiencing.
“May [foi] a rainy season, but here in the last few days there has been a great drought, the climate has become very dry and we are going to expect heatstroke with high temperatures”, he told the CNN José Miguel Martínez, director of Civil Protection for Durango.
Drought hits the interior of Mexico
The drought will again affect agricultural production, which is already suffering from the lack of rain it faced in 2021, when the country was experiencing “one of the most severe and prolonged droughts in decades”.
“If you go to the field and look at the sprouts of maize plants that are already at a good size, they are very thirsty and this does not allow the maize to grow enough and that is why we will have losses”, said Margarito Favela González, that starts from the surveillance of an irrigation module in the field.
Water shortage
The drought that Mexico is experiencing doesn’t just affect rural areas. The water shortage crisis forced the Nuevo León state government to limit water supply to residents of the Monterrey metropolitan area.
Every day from 6pm to 6am, drinking water pressure is reduced in several areas of the city, an additional measure that is part of the “Water for All” plan implemented by the authorities to deal with the crisis since March.
But drought, heat and less rain don’t just cause shortages. In Chihuahua — which has extreme droughts — this natural resource is stolen. According to Alan Falomir, director of the Central State Water Board, they detected theft of drinking water.
“Drinking water is being used for agricultural irrigation, in other cases for entertainment farms, swimming pools, we even detect water commercialization,” he explained to CNN .
Meanwhile, in states like Durango — which has severe droughts, according to the Conágua monitor — citizens have to cover their basic needs by buying purified water or bringing it from natural sources.
“There are days when we can’t even take a shower, sometimes we have difficulty drinking water from the jugs or bathing directly from the jugs because the community is short of water,” said Jorge Esparza, a student from Durango affected by the drought, says the CNN .
According to the Institute of Astronomy and Meteorology at the University of Guadalajara, the La Niña phenomenon — still present in May — brings with it temperature variations that produce changes in the circulation of the ocean and atmosphere, which favors the dry environment in the country.
With information from Belén Zapata
Source: CNN Brasil
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