Floods and droughts: Why are climatic phenomena intensifying in Latin America?
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In February and March of this year, tragic weather events occurred in Chile and Peru. In Peru, landslides -slides of mud and rocks that, due to their speed, carry stones and logs- caused by heavy rains resulted in the death of people and the disappearance of houses in the town of Chosica. A similar scenario was experienced in Atacama, Chile, where thousands of people were affected by the same climatic phenomenon. Although these events are regular in both areas, climate change has caused them to intensify and develop with greater continuity.
Eduardo Durand, Director of Climate Change at the Ministry of Environment of Peru, explains that the intensification of rainfall and the increase in temperature are two consequences of climate change, which in turn cause phenomena such as landslides to worsen.
“Events that were once considered extreme and developed in specific seasons are now, as a consequence of climate change, more common.”, held to ConexiónCOP.
Climate variations
In addition to landslides, the increase in Greenhouse Gases (GHG) bring with them waves of drought and desertification, especially in Latin America and the Caribbean. In 2014, the country most affected by this phenomenon was Brazil, which caused the population to face serious difficulties due to water shortages.
The changes that the region is facing are typical of global warming and disasters generated by extreme weather events will occur with greater continuity in several countries of the region. Chilean meteorologist Jorge Carrasco explains that the atmosphere has no borders and that the flapping of a butterfly in Brazil can generate a storm on the other side of the world.
“Occasionally, cold air passing through Chile can reach the southern regions of Brazil. If we think about the climatic relationship that Peru, Chile and Brazil have, we can say that in summer the monsoon circulation that takes place in Brazil and that transports humid and warm air from the northeast to the altiplano, will cause summer precipitation, that is, the climate will become warmer.”, The specialist points out.
Along the same lines, Eduardo Durand argues that Peru and Brazil share Amazonian ecosystems, but that, as a result of climate change, river floods may be altered, which in turn may lead to changes in the rhythm of life of Amazonian species.
Similarly, Peru shares with Chile the Humboldt Current, which gives a temperate character to the coasts, but is altered by global warming, causing the waters to warm and generate abnormal swells.
In this video you can see how climate change will affect Peru:
Mitigation and adaptation actions
Given the increase in climate variations, it is necessary for the Latin American region to create adaptation and mitigation programs to cope with climate change. Julián Ramírez Villegas, researcher at the Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security Research Program (CCAFS), explains that Latin American countries must create programs that facilitate adaptation.
“Climate changes will occur in the short, medium and long term. That is why it is important for governments to generate instruments and incentives for farmers to adapt to climate variations,” he stresses.
Eduardo Durand adds that research on climate changes must be improved, in addition to developing new technologies for water use, housing construction and animal husbandry. “When the climate changes, so do the flora, fauna and human life.”, ends.
Source: COP connection
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