In March of this year, the country reached the worst index in the historical series, which began in 1950; drought has already affected 58% of the territory
Brazil faces the worst drought since records began in 1950. According to Cemaden (National Center for Monitoring and Alerts for Natural Disasters), the current drought is more severe than those recorded in 1998 and 2015/2016 and is impacting 58% of the national territory.
The monitoring center uses the SPEI (Standardized Precipitation Evapotranspiration Index) to measure drought severity. “Think of SPEI as a thermometer that assesses the ‘thirst level’ of a region, considering both rainfall and water evaporation”explained Ana Paula Cunha, a Cemaden specialist, to Poder360.
The index is calculated based on the amount of rainfall and the water that evaporates from plants. Values between “0” and “-1” indicate below-average conditions, and values below “-1” indicate more intense drought. Since October 2023, Brazil has been facing severe conditions, with the index reaching -1.94 in March 2024, the worst in the historical series.
The August drought monitoring bulletin, released on Tuesday (September 3, 2024), reveals a reduction in the total number of municipalities with extreme drought compared to July. Despite this improvement, the situation remains critical, with significant areas still facing extreme drought, especially in Mato Grosso. In addition, there is a worsening of the drought in Acre and western Amazonas.
Currently, around 200 municipalities remain in extreme drought conditions, with emphasis on São Paulo (82 municipalities), Minas Gerais (52), Goiás (12), Mato Grosso do Sul (8) and Mato Grosso (24).
The situation is particularly alarming in some municipalities, such as Santa Isabel do Rio Negro (Amazonas), which has been facing extreme drought for 12 months; and Canápolis (Minas Gerais) and Apiacás (Mato Grosso), which have been in this condition for 10 months.
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