The drought is continuing to worsen across Maine, USA #Drought #Maine #USA
Maine’s Drought Task Force says conditions are getting worse, with little relief on the way.
Since the task force met two weeks ago, the area in severe drought has grown to 42 percent of the state.
It now covers parts of Penobscot, Piscataquis, Somerset and Washington Counties in addition to Aroostook County.
That area has been in severe drought for more than seven weeks.
While above-normal precipitation is expected in the next 6 to 10 days, conditions may still get worse.
Courtesy of wabi.tv
Almost 3,000 cattle dead due to drought in Las Tunas, Cuba #Cattle #Drought #LasTunas #Cuba
Illustration Photo
This June 9, the state-owned Periódico 26, belonging to the province of Las Tunas, outlined the critical situation in which the largest cattle are in that province, two thousand 954 cattle have died from malnutrition in recent months.
“The main causes of the deaths continue to be malnutrition, with two thousand 954”.
This is mainly because the farmers are not able to guarantee the food for the dry season, and it is not only about the grass, or the feed, this also includes not having sufficient water reserves. Keep in mind that at least one beef needs 120 liters of the precious liquid daily.
But the situation goes a little beyond these figures, as detailed in the newspaper 26 Newspaper.
“Until the end of May, the province accumulates seven thousand 069 deaths, with two thousand 593 more than in the same period of the previous year and an index of 2.80 percent, of 1.65 allowable. By municipalities, are Tunas (860) and Jobabo (642) had the worst results in that period “,
The bovine mass in Las Tunas amounts to 241 thousand 800 heads, to which must be added more than 2,600 buffaloes, as Jorge Luis Lozada Hechavarría, deputy delegate of Livestock in the Delegation of the Ministry of Agriculture, recently declared to the press. He specified that these animals are in the hands of some 15,000 owners.
Another cause that affects livestock losses is accidents , with 922. “For these two reasons alone, 54.8 percent of total losses occurred, ” said the aforementioned state newspaper.
Courtesy of adncuba.com
At least 500 cattle dead due to drought in Veracruz, Mexico #Cattle #Drought #Veracruz #Mexico
Photo Illustration
The dry season left at least 500 head of cattle dead in the central area of the state, with Tierra Blanca being one of the most affected municipalities, informed the president of the Livestock Union in that area, Jesús Ortega Couttolenc.
“The reports we have are more than anything from Tierra Blanca, it is not that the other places have not been given, but that was where there was the death of cattle, there are some who have reported to us about 400 or 500 heads, which are what we know us, there must be a lot more dead cattle, but we cannot talk about what has been done to us formally, if it was a very difficult time, “he said.
He explained that although with the start of the rainy season the land is already beginning to get wet and green in the central area, the damage could take 30 more days.
“Fortunately, a little water has already fallen, in the central area it was not what we could expect, but the one that fell has already started to green the grass, it is still a problem and it will continue for another 30 days but here we go,” he concluded.
Courtesy of eldemocrata.com
Drought warning as dam levels decline in Cape Town, South Africa #Drought #Dam #CapeTown #SouthAfrica
CAPE Town’s dam levels have declined by 0.6%, according to readings from earlier this month.
This was recorded over the week from May 4-10 and resulted in 54.3% of total dam level capacity.
Water consumption for the period increased to 676 million litres per day.
Consumption was at 662 million litres per day, in the previous week, the City said.
Two years ago the City of Cape Town experienced the Day Zero water crisis.
Mayco member for water and waste Xanthea Limberg said although the bulk of the region’s rainfall traditionally falls between May and June, rainfall in 2020 to date was lower than the long-term average between January and April.
Water consumption is well below the long-term average, so low rainfall was not a significant cause for concern, she said.
“The possibility that the drought may not be over does warrant a reminder that we need to remain aware of water restrictions.
“Reacting quickly and effectively to changes in water restrictions is the most important intervention during drought periods,” said Limberg.
She told Weekend Argus that Cape Town pulled off a world record-breaking drought response, in its reduction in water consumption and many of these changes have been permanent.
“Through efforts by residents to reduce water consumption, a range of interventions by the City administration (including intensive pressure management, restructuring of water tariffs and water augmentation projects), we pulled through the worst of it without ever having to turn off taps and implement the Day Zero scenario,” she said.
Residents reduced consumption by almost 60% in world record-breaking time, resulting in the city being formally acknowledged by the International Water Association, said Limberg.
The city was recognised as the global “Water Saving Capital” by the International Water Association in 2018.
There was a decline in water consumption when looking back over the previous 1-2 months.
Water consumption normally goes down in winter and up in summer, so a drop in consumption over April/May is to be expected, added Limberg.
Jo Barnes, an epidemiologist and senior lecturer at the Stellenbosch University’s faculty of health sciences, said water use would vary depending on many factors.
“Weather plays a role (unexpectedly hot weather tends to cause higher water use). It is a lockdown week, so very few industries were in full operation so much less water would have been used.”
There was also 13mm of rain recorded which reduced consumption towards the end of last week.
Jacqueline Goldin, the Unesco chairperson for groundwater at UWC, said climate change has not mobilised the world in a way that the coronavirus has, but it should have.
“We should have a solidarity fund, a climate change command officer, policing and coming together as a globe to reduce our carbon footprint, save water and save our planet,” said Goldin.
Courtesy of iol.co.za
Thousands of dead fish due to drought, an ‘ecological disaster’ in Metztitlán lagoon, Mexico #fish #Mexico
A natural disaster is the one that is being lived in the Metztitlán lagoon, in the state of Hidalgo, which is dry, as only 10 percent contains the channel contains water, reported biologist Edwin Flores Ortega, a resident of the community from San Cristóbal.
Thousands of dead fish lie in what is considered one of the worst ecological disasters in the region that affects both fishermen and farmers, he said.
According to the inhabitant of the region, the decrease in the flow of the lagoon started a year ago.
Courtesy of excelsior.com.mx
200 #elephants dead due to #drought in #Zimbabwe
According to information confirmed by official Zimbabwean authorities to the BBC News Africa, at least 200 elephants died due to lack of food and water due to the severe drought in the country. As a measure of urgency and to avoid new deceased specimens, it is studied to transfer hundreds of pachyderms from their current location to other national parks with better benefits.
Courtesy of elintransigente.com
55+ #elephants dead due to #drought in #Zimbabwe
GETTY IMAGES
At least 55 elephants have starved to death in Zimbabwe’s Hwange National Park over the past two months amid a severe drought.
“The situation is dire,” Zimparks spokesman Tinashe Farawo said. “The elephants are dying from starvation and this is a big problem.”
The drought has massively reduced crop levels in Zimbabwe.
A third of the population is reportedly in need of food aid in the midst of an ongoing economic crisis.
In August, a World Food Programme report said two million people were at risk of starvation in the country.
Some of the elephants were reportedly found within 50 metres (yards) of water pans – suggesting they had travelled far and died just before reaching them.
The elephants have caused “massive destruction” of vegetation in Hwange, Mr Farawo said. The park can handle about 15,000 elephants but currently has more than 50,000.
Zimparks – which does not get government funding – has been trying to drill wells but lacks the money to continue, Mr Farawo added.
Courtesy of BBC News
96,000 #cattle dead due to #drought in #Mexico
According to the report that the cattle unions have, both from the north and from the center-south of the state, the number of heads of cattle killed by the drought amounts to 96 thousand, which is equivalent to eight percent of the cattle herd.
Arnoldo Amaya, president of the Regional Livestock Union of the North, said that according to the numbers that were taking a few days ago among all livestock groups, we can talk about eight percent of the cattle herd lost due to drought.
Most of the dead cattle are found in the northern part of the state where the rains were minimal.
He clarified that they do not want to talk about numbers of dead animals, they are only based on percentages, eight out of every 100 animals have died from drought.
In Durango the cattle herd, recognized by the state, federal authorities and the livestock associations themselves, is one million 200 thousand heads. This means that eight percent represent 96 thousand cattle.
Although the problem of livestock mortality has stopped due to the little rain that has fallen, in the north of the state there are still municipalities with little water.
“Unfortunately, due to the low humidity, the grass that has already left will end before the end of the year, so the dry season is going to be practically since January,” said Arnoldo Amaya.
And that is where the producers of both the social sector and large farmers will begin to present problems of mortality, especially the first ones that have the least resources.
He explained that the major crisis in the livestock sector is going to be felt since January, especially because there will be no grass, and the little that remains, because of its size, is going to dry or burn with frost.
In addition, the low temperatures that are recorded will hit strongly in the cattle that when presenting feeding problems, they will get sick faster.
Courtesy of elsiglodedurango.com.mx
60,000+ #cattle dead due to #drought in #Namibia
According to a latest announcement by the minister of agriculture, water and forestry, Alpheus Naruseb, a total of 60 000+ cattle have died right across Namibia as the drought continues to ravage the regions.
The figure has been sourced from the ministry’s veterinary service functionaries
Government has been forced to increase its drought relief aid budget, overstretching the contingency fund but having to cover the gap with donations from private, public sector and the international community.
Prime Minister Saara Kuugongelwa Amadhila met with ministers and regional governors yesterday at her offices where she told the media that the budget allocation for drought has now increased to N$595.2 million.
Government had initially budgeted N$300 million.
But thatis now more than N$572.5 million of the initially approved budget while the actual funding of the budget has now overshot the initially agreed budget that was not fully funded.
So dire has the drought situation becomes that this week, the Namibia Agricultural Union announced that the Hardap Dam had been severely impacted with water levels at a critical 14.7%.
If the rains do not come, farmers in the vicinity of the dam could cease to have access to purified water by 2021.
Government has thus gone on the over-drive and is considering investing in desalination plants to syphon water from the sea.
The Patriot wanted to understand whether the OPM had received news of any deaths in the regions yet as well as how many households were in need of drought relief aid.
“When the programme started the estimated number of household beneficiaries was 42 000 according to the vulnerability assessment.
This process was later followed by the identification and the registration of beneficiaries based on the criteria as established and approved by cabinet.
But this verification produced higher number of qualifying households which is now 172 938 households,” said Kuugongelwa-Amadhila.
One of the big questions is how is government best transporting the food aid across the regions and how secure are the storage spaces so that they ultimately reach the affected.
“We are being assisted by the Namibian Defence Force who have availed transportation in the form of truck and human resources to distribute food,” said the PM.
Courtesy of thepatriot.com.na
106,000 #cattle dead due to #drought in #Chile
Petorca More than one hundred thousand dead animals, family crops on the verge of extinction and about 600,000 people who need to be supplied with water. The megasequía hits with force the center of Chile after a decade of deficit of rains.
The end of the driest southern winter in six decades left a complex balance: six of the 16 regions of Chile suffer the effects of the rainfall deficit, which in the case of Valparaíso and Santiago reached 77%.
Between the regions of Atacama (north) and Maule (south) there are about 106,000 animals killed due to lack of water and food, according to the Ministry of Agriculture.
Chile meets most of the nine vulnerability criteria set forth by the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), including areas prone to drought and desertification.
Courtesy of radioondaazul.com
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