Drought in Argentina-nothing alive
2022.12.09 06:51
Drought in Argentina-nothing alive
Budrigannews.com – The stark signs of a historic drought that is hammering crops and farmers like Ignacio Bastanchuri include the dried-out bed of a huge lagoon in the fields around the town of Navarro in Argentina’s Pampas farm belt and the decaying bodies of dead cattle.
Navarro is one of dozens of towns in the bread-basket province of Buenos Aires struggling under the prolonged drought that is threatening the country’s major wheat, corn, and soy crops. It is located about 100 kilometers (62 miles) west of the capital, Buenos Aires.
Bastanchuri, 65, led a Reuters reporter through a field of browning, limp wheat plants that were just over 12 inches (30.48 cm) tall. These plants were less than half the height they should have been at this time of year because the soil didn’t have enough water.
He stated, “We have not even reached 50% of the average for this area this year. We have been experiencing a water deficit for the last two years.” Much of the crop was likely to end up as animal feed rather than being used to make pasta and bread for humans.
Three dead cows were slowly drying in the sun in another field a few kilometers away, a sign of the third La Nia climate event in a row, which generally limits rainfall in Argentina’s most important farm regions.
Argentina’s wheat harvest forecast has been sharply reduced due to the drought, and corn and soy harvests are also in jeopardy. The nation is the top exporter of processed soy oil and meal in the world and the No. 3, corn.
Cristian Russo, head of estimates at the Rosario grains exchange, told Reuters, “In this grain campaign, we had to prepare for the worst scenario of the last 20 years, and that is what we are seeing.”
According to Russo, soil moisture levels were lower than they were during the 2008/09 season, when the South American nation planted 18 million hectares and produced only 31 million tonnes of soybeans.
The trade gauges a 2022/23 soybean harvest of 48 million tons, however that figure is probably going to be cut as dry season defers planting and makes a few areas of land unusable.
The future of the corn that is being planted right now is also uncertain. “The number of hectares that are going to be planted is definitely going to be very low if it doesn’t rain or normalize now in December,” farmer Bastanchuri stated.
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Residents of Navarro can walk across the local lagoon, which is 150 hectares in size, amid shells and dead fish. It is unlikely that it will restock in the near future due to the high summer temperatures in the Southern Hemisphere and little rain forecast.
The National Meteorological Service predicts that most of the agricultural core, which includes the north of Buenos Aires province and the south of Santa Fe, will receive less rain than usual between December 2022 and February 2023.
“It is highly likely that both the maximum and minimum temperatures will be extremely high. “Both are very high, which indicates that it will be very hot,” stated Matilde Rusticucci, a climatologist and researcher.
According to the Rosario grains exchange, there will be 10 to 15 millimeters of rain in the most needy areas over the next few days, but it won’t be nearly enough.
Russo said, “It is not the important rains that we need,” comparing the situation to a drought in 2008/09, when significant rains had fallen at the end of the year. He stated that this year appeared worse.
According to Russo, the current wheat crop forecast of 11.8 million tonnes could be further reduced from the initial 19 million tonnes. In 2008/09 the wheat gather was 8.3 million tons.
He stated, “We are at a point where things appear really very complex.”
