Mexican Drought Fuels Despair

A cow lies rotting in the hot sun near Rancho Piedra, Mexico, Friday, May 31, 1996. Four years of drought have scorched crops and cattle grazing lands across northern Mexico, killing tens of thousands of heads of cattle. ( AP Photo/Joe Cavaretta)

By Evan Duffey, Meteorologist

Mar 25, 2012; 11:46 AM ET

While drought conditions have recently let up across the state of Texas in the United States, a drought of record proportions continues in Mexico.
The drought in northern Mexico has led to massive starvation amongst cattle, who have nothing to graze. Normally in these situations, farmers would be able to increase the amount of grain in their cattles' diet; however, the drought has drastically increased the price of grain as well.
Across Mexico, farmland is scattered with carcasses of farm animals who have died of starvationStorm. Large amounts of land have been deemed no longer useful for any agriculture, making the situation worse.
The Mexican government has stepped up efforts to provide relief, spending over $2.5 million in aid. Water tankers have been seen moving from town to town to make sure at least the people have the water they need until nature provides some relief.
Part of the reason for the Mexican drought was a rather quiet tropical season this past fall. Only three tropical systems made their way inland from the Atlantic, Tropical Storm Arlene, Tropical Storm Harvey and Hurricane Nate. And even these storms failed to penetrate across the Sierra Madres.
Another factor affecting the drought includes a predominantly continental track for this winter's storms. Many storm systems crossed the northern Plains of the U.S., instead of developing over the southern Plains and the Gulf of Mexico and moving up the southeastern U.S. coast. A drought in the southeastern U.S., mainly across Georgia, is also the result of this winter's storm track.
The impacts of the southern North American drought are expected to be felt for a long time. In an effort to cut their losses, Mexican farmers have been slaughtering their cows at a much higher rate than normal in order to make some sort of a living off their herds. Re-establishing herds will not be instantaneous and with grain prices so high, feeding any new cattle once the drought passes will still be expensive.
One sign that points toward possible recovery is the ENSO is currently returning to neutral. The ENSO is a climate pattern measured by changes in ocean temperatures. This past winter has been a La Nina year, which typically means well below-normal precipitation for the southern U.S. and northern Mexico. If an El Nino forms by this upcoming winter, there is the possibility that enough moisture will have returned to allow for a significant recovery.

Mexican Drought Fuels Despair