This year was the hottest summer in decades. It is a manifestation of climate change. One of the consequences of the heat wave was a lack of rain, which affects soil moisture, reduces the flow of rivers and leads to drought, said experts on the subject.
Water scarcity is a problem that affects the planet in general. However, one of the most affected sectors is agriculture. Without the resource, planting, production and sales of inputs, that is, the production chain in general, can be stalled for months, a fact that reduces the income of households living in rural areas and cuts the supply of food across the country. does less. community.
The problem has reached such an extent that, as of May 31 this year, Mexico had a record 863 municipalities that reported some level of drought, according to information from the National Water Commission (Conagua).
The general director of the National Council of Agriculture (CNA), Luis Fernando Haro, explained that the region is facing serious problems due to the recent droughts recorded in various regions of the country, which began in 2020 and continued this year. Stayed.
During a forum organized by Bayer de México, the director of the CNA explained that, in the areas most affected by drought, the livestock sector expresses that “the grasslands are not enough to feed cattle and the impact of It is the yield of crops which depends on the seasons.
Various initiatives have been started by the companies to mitigate the problem. The ones Bayer has put into practice focus on producing more with less water use. For this, it has developed new technologies to make agricultural processes sustainable.
Bayer aims to reduce the environmental impact of crop protection treatments and greenhouse gas emissions by 30 percent by 2030.
And it is that, according to experts, prolonged drought directly affects food security, increasing poverty and hunger.
UNAM geologist Luis Marin Stillman says one of the country’s problems at present is that companies and producers are unaware of Mexico’s water resources, so all possibilities should be studied so that resource availability is not exhausted.
“There is water under the earth (that is not used). What climate change is doing for us in terms of water, we must learn that the periods of rain will be shorter but more intense and that we need to store water not only in dams, but also in dams. Rather we should also store in the sub-land, that is, where we have to go”, he highlighted.
The director of Veolia México – a company devoted exclusively to water treatment – Humberto Méndez considered that all sectors that participate in the water cycle in some way could be involved in producing liquid produce so that shortages could be seen as a problem in the country. Do not persist in this, because “we must be efficient for the benefit of agriculture”.
Bayer wants to support smallholder farmers, and works so they have access to technological advancements and innovative solutions. Because the company believes that small farmers are the key to fighting hunger, it is committed to enabling millions of small farmers around the world to increase their profitability.
The company, which apart from being a pharmaceutical company develops solutions to issues related to agriculture, has also implemented methods so that growers know when and how much water they need to harvest, so that they can make better use of the resource. can and implement a drip irrigation system, a fact that allows for greater availability of water for crops.
Bayer, to date, supports over 80 thousand small growers with training, advice and technology to enhance their crops and their quality of life and has benefited 2 million small growers with training and tailored solutions; The target is to reach 3.5 million by 2030.
The problem must be attacked and a solution sought, as Conagua indicates that three quarters of the country is suffering from a lack of rain, with more than half experiencing drought between spring and last summer and, by 2025, at least one of the national territories. Two thirds will be affected by erosion.
