From Lake Titicaca To Panama Canal, Drought Plagues Central And South America

Drought has been a major concern in Central and South America for months. From the Panama Canal to the Amazon forests and Lake Titicaca, El Niño has led to sharp declines in rainfall in recent months, entailing important economic and social consequences.

In recent hours, the Panama Canal has announced further restrictions on the number of transit ships. In 2022, according to AGI news agency, an average of 40 ships passed through the port every day. This year, the number was limited first to 31, and now to 25, with further tightening expected in the coming months, when the number of ships will be limited to 18 per day. This is especially alarming, given that 6% of the world’s maritime trade takes place here and that October 2023 was the region’s driest month since 1959.

Things are no better in the Amazon forests, where one of the main tributaries of the Amazon, Rio Negro, is experiencing one of the worst water shortages in history: river levels are at their lowest levels in decades. In these areas, water is also the main way of transport, connecting the various villages scattered throughout the forest, which have no other means of communication other than the river.

Even Lake Titicaca, the world’s highest navigable lake on the border of Peru and Bolivia, is nearing record lows. Since April, water levels have fallen by an average of 10 cm per month due to severe drought and above-average heat, and now the water level is about 33 cm above the record low level recorded in 1943.

These situations may be caused by the El Niño phenomenon, which warms the Pacific Ocean and affects temperatures and precipitation around the world.