Chilean water crisis explained

Chilean water crisis
Image Upright:	.75
Date:	-present
Location:	Chile
Type:	Drought
Cause:	Climate change Ridiculously Resilient Ridge Privatization of water
Outcome:	Tens of thousands of dead animals Water rationing
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The Chilean water crisis is a period of extreme water scarcity and drought in Chile that began in 2010 in response to climate change, agricultural practices and the existing policies established in the early 1980s. It is the longest lasting drought experienced in Chile in over 700 to 1,000 years.^{[1] [2]}

The megadrought that begun in 2010 have contributed to make large swathes of Chile more prone to wildfire.^[3] In Central Chile much natural vegetation have experienced reduced chlorophyll levels and vigor as result of the megadrought.^[3]

History

Economy and politics

The 1980 Constitution of Chile created under the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet recognizes water as a private property and in 1981, his government rewrote laws regulating water, granting the sale and privatization of water in a manner similar to the stock market.^{[4] [5]} The sale of water rights has been one of the primary factors that led to lower water levels in some areas. Chile's economy developed into mainly extractivism and due to the privatization of water; by 2022, forestry—representing 3% of the nation's gross domestic product—consumed 59% of Chile's water, agriculture used 37% and only 2% was allocated for human consumption.^[6]

Drought

Chile began to experience a drought in 2010 and by 2020, precipitation was 20–45% of average nationally and 10–20% of average in the area of Santiago. According to René D. Garreaud, of the University of Chile, the drought was the most extreme in the area in over 1,000 years. During the Petorca water crisis, it was found in 2011 that large agricultural companies were stealing water from water outlets of the Petorca River.^[7]

The Drought is caused by an anomalous and persistent blob of high pressure in the Southern Pacific Ocean, which has been attributed to reduced moisture and a lack of precipitation.

A 2018 study found that in the 2010-2014 period, nutrient values in the plumes of rivers discharging to the Pacific in Central Chile fell to half of their historic values.^{[8] [9] [10]}

By 2020, nearly 500,000 Chileans relied on water transport trucks and tens of thousands of animals died from drought.^[11] In 2021, research published by the Journal of Climate stated that a "Southern Blob" partially caused by climate change was exacerbating the drought.^[12] By 2022, Chile was ranked 16th of 164 for water stress in the world according to the University of Chile.^[13] In April 2022, Chile instituted a four-tiered water rationing plan; the second level included a public announcement, the third would lower water pressure and the most extreme level would rotate water stoppages for 24 hours.^[14]

Notable events

• 1985 – First year in modern times that Petorca River dries out according to Lorena Donaire of Modatima.^[15]
• 2018 – Laguna de Aculeo is since 2018 a dry lake.^[16] The drying of lake is the result of below-average rainfall over the past decade and also because of human activity which are diverting rivers and pumping groundwater from aquifers, which both had replenished the lake.^{[17] [18]}
• 2022
  • The reservoir Embalse de Peñuela dries up.
  • For the first time in history, a water rationing plan is announced for Santiago.^[19]
• 2023
  • For the first time ever, the Ministry of Agriculture declares Magallanes Region, Chile's southernmost region, in "agricultural alert" caused by drought.^{[20] [21]} The events leading up this situation are the years of 2022 and 2021 which had low precipitations.^[20] 2021 in particular was the fourth driest known year since meteorological records began.^[20]
  • Maipo River's apparent inability to break through its mouth bar following a storm surge in January 2023 has been credited to low discharge rates caused by excessive uptakes of water upstream.^{[22] [23]}

See also

• Drought in Chile

Notes and References

1. Web site: 2020-04-14 . A Strained Water System in Chile . 2022-06-08 . . en.
2. Web site: Crisis hídrica en la cuenca de Petorca: una combinación entre la megasequía y el manejo del agua. 2020-04-29. 2021-07-21. Diario UACh. Muñoz. Ariel. Austral University of Chile. Klock-Barría. Karin. Spanish. Álvarez-Garretón. Camila. Aguilera. Isabella. González-Reyes. Álvaro. Lastra. José A.. Chávez. Roberto O.. Barría. Pilar. Christie. Duncan. Rojas-Badilla. Moisés. LeQuesne. Carlos.
3. Impactos de los incendios forestales de magnitud en áreas silvestres protegidas de Chile Central . . Faúndez Pinilla . Jorge . 2 . 44 . Castillo Soto . Miguel . 10.4067/s0717-92002023000100083 . 2023 . Spanish . Impacts of severe wildfires in the protected wilderness areas of central Chile . Navarro Cerrillo . Rafael M.. free .
4. Web site: 2022-06-01 . 'Consequences will be dire': Chile's water crisis is reaching breaking point . 2022-06-08 . . en.
5. Web site: The mystery of a disappearing lake and the struggle over water rights in Chile. 2022-03-08 . 2022-06-08 . . en-GB.
6. Web site: Gallagher . Daniel . 2016-09-15 . The heavy price of Santiago's privatised water . 2022-12-10 . . en.
7. News: Freixas . Meritxell . March 22, 2019 . El aguacate que llega a Europa seca Chile . Spanish . . July 21, 2021.
8. The Influence of River Discharge on Nutrient Export and Phytoplankton Biomass Off the Central Chile Coast (33°–37°S): Seasonal Cycle and Interannual Variability . Frontiers in Marine Science. Masotti . Italo . 2018-11-22 . 5 . Aparicio-Rizzo . Pilar . 10.3389/fmars.2018.00423 . 2018 . Yevenes . Mariela A. . Garreaud . René . Belmar . Lucy . Farías . Laura . free .
9. News: El aporte de nutrientes de los ríos a la costas chilenas bajó a la mitad por la megasequía . del Mar Parra . María . 2023-06-30 . 2023-07-01 . . Spanish.
10. Sangüesa, Claudia, Roberto Pizarro, Ben Ingram, Francisco Balocchi, Pablo García-Chevesich, Juan Pino, Alfredo Ibáñez, Carlos Vallejos, Romina Mendoza, Alejandra Bernal, and et al. 2023. "Streamflow Trends in Central Chile." Hydrology 10, no. 7: 144. https://doi.org/10.3390/hydrology10070144
11. Web site: Newman . Lucia . 10 February 2020 . Chile drought enters critical phase . 2022-06-08 . . en.
12. News: Garrison . Cassandra . 2021-08-26 . Climate change fueling warm ocean 'blob' causing Chile megadrought - study . en . . 2022-06-08.
13. Web site: 2022-05-02 . La crisis del agua . 2022-06-08 . Interferencia . es.
14. Web site: Reuters . 2022-04-11 . Chile announces unprecedented plan to ration water as drought enters 13th year . 2022-06-08 . . en.
15. News: Rodeados de paltos, pero sin agua para el consumo: el drama de zonas con escasez hídrica en Chile. Salgado. Daniela. April 6, 2021. July 12, 2021. Radio Bío-Bío. Radio France Internationale. Spanish.
16. News: ¿El fin de la laguna de Aculeo? Últimas lluvias tienen cero impacto en su caudal . Montes . Carlos . 2022-07-22 . 2023-01-07 . Qué Pasa . La Tercera.
17. Web site: Welle (www.dw.com) . Deutsche . The mystery of a disappearing lake and the struggle over water rights in Chile DW 08.03.2022 . 2022-03-29 . DW.COM . en-GB.
18. Web site: 2022-06-01 . 'Consequences will be dire': Chile's water crisis is reaching breaking point . 2022-06-08 . . en.
19. News: El embalse chileno de Peñuelas se seca mientras la histórica sequía entra en su 13º año . 2022-06-21 . 2023-01-27 . iagua . Spanish.
20. News: Chile declara por primera vez alerta por sequía en la austral Magallanes . 2023-01-13 . 2023-01-27 . . Spanish.
21. News: Oficial: hay sequía en Magallanes, por primera vez en la historia. January 13, 2023. January 24, 2023. Radio Bío-Bío. Spanish. Lara. Emilio.
22. News: Río Maipo no desemboca en el mar desde el jueves pasado: Las razones del fenómeno . Olivares Nieto . B. . 2023-01-26 . 2023-01-27 . . Spanish.
23. News: Río Maipo vuelve a desembocar en el mar tras construcción de zanja para encauzar caudal . Zamarin . Felipe . 2023-01-28 . Radio Bío-Bío.