Almost 85 percent of Mexico today suffers from one of the worst droughts in recent decades, according to a study by the United States Space Agency (NASA), which reveals a special situation: the presence of huge water reservoirs. in Quintana Roo and Yucatán.
The NASA Terrestrial Observatory published a study on the presence of water in our country on its website, a text that presents a bleak outlook due to the widespread drought.
“Mexico is experiencing one of the most widespread and intense droughts in decades. As of April 15, 2021, nearly 85 percent of the country is facing drought conditions. Large dams throughout Mexico are at exceptionally low levels, which depletes water resources for drinking, cultivating and watering”.
This situation is evidenced by the Operational Earth Image Generator (OLI), which shows the Villa Victoria dam, one of the main water supplies in Mexico City:
March 27, 2020:
The dam on March 30, 2021.
Villa Victoria is at approximately one third of its normal capacity.
A similar situation occurs in other parts of northern and central Mexico, whose dams are less than 25 percent of their capacity, causing many families to be left without regular access to drinking water.
Quintana Roo and Yucatán: the other side of the coin
The map provided by NASA also shows a singular fact: the southeast of the country does not seem to suffer the harshest impacts of the drought, especially Quintana Roo and Yucatán.
In the image it is evident that the Evaporative Stress Index – how much water evaporates from the earth and plants – is much lower in the vegetation of the states of Quintana Roo, Yucatán and Campeche, where humidity is most prevalent:
“(These) observations are used to estimate evapotranspiration, or how much water evaporates from the earth’s surface and plant leaves.
Based on variations in Earth’s surface temperatures, the ESI indicates how the current evapotranspiration rate – averaged over 12 weeks from early February to April 30 on this map – compares to normal conditions.
Negative values are below normal rates and indicate plants that are stressed due to inadequate soil moisture”.
