Northern Mexico Has a Historic Water Shortage Kasha Patel and Lauren Tierney - The Washington Post
go to original August 9, 2022

Mexico Declares State Of Emergency Over Worsening Drought (NBC News)

Water has become a sacred commodity in northern Mexico.

Reservoirs have been hitting the bottom of their basins. Taps have been running dry for millions of people in the city of Monterrey, where the water shortage was called a matter of national security. Water bills have skyrocketed.

People have sabotaged pipes that could divert water to other cities. Truck drivers delivering water have been kidnapped.

Ranchers in rural areas have lost livestock or sold their herds prematurely because they can’t feed them.

“People are making lines to obtain a few liters of water. … I wonder how it is possible that they reach this level?” said Víctor Magaña-Rueda, a climatologist at the National Autonomous University of Mexico. “In March, nobody was talking about the socioeconomic drought, and, all of a sudden, we realized that Monterrey was facing one of the worst droughts ever seen in the area.”

For more than a year, northern Mexico has experienced abnormally dry to exceptional drought conditions, but water shortages have become increasingly dire in recent months. During a water shortage, residents in Monterrey, Mexico, wait in line to fill containers with clean water on June 20. (Marian Carrasquero/Bloomberg) As demand has grown, researchers say a lack of rain and, especially, water mismanagement have led to one of the worst droughts in the northern half of the country. As populations continue to increase and temperatures keep rising, speeding up evaporation from the land surface, water problems will worsen without better adaptation.

“We should really change water management not only in terms of climate change and what may result from it, but also in terms of water demands. Our population has grown. Water demands grow. So things should change,” Magaña-Rueda said.

Read the rest at Washington Post

Related: Revealed: How Climate Breakdown Is Supercharging Toll of Extreme Weather (The Guardian)

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