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Dry Corridor

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The Dry Corridor or Central American Dry Corridor (CADC) is a tropical dry forest region on the Pacific Coast of Central America.[1] This area, which extends from southern Mexico to Panama, is extremely vulnerable to climate change due to much of the population living in rural areas and in poverty, and thus dependent on grain crops for their livelihood.[2]

Particularly vulnerable to climate change are the areas of Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras.[3][4] Since 2001, these areas have suffered from irregular drought patterns due to changes in the El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO).[5][6] During an El Niño event in 2009 (the year the term “Dry Corridor” was penned), it is estimated that 50-100% of crops in these regions were affected by the water deficit, and between 2014 and 2016, millions of people in the dry corridor needed food aid due to drought during this period, which resulted in losses of the corn crop.[7][8] By 2018, it was estimated that at least 25% of households in the region experienced food insecurity.[9] As a result, relief agencies have been advised to take a “Food first” response when addressing this crisis, focusing initially on areas at highest risk of food insecurity.[10]

Drought impact has been especially severe in Honduras[11] and Guatemala.[12]

2019 was the fifth straight year of drought,[13] and the "second consecutive year of failed yields for subsistence farmers."[14] The climate has been becoming hotter and drier, agricultural pests are increasing, spring rains are decreasing or absent, and floods have become heavier.[13][15][16]

Approximately 8% of families in the region report that they plan to migrate in an attempt to improve their situations, with the increase in emigration of “500% between 2010 and 2015.”[17][18] Up to 4 million climate change migrants from Central America and Mexico are projected by 2050, according to a World Bank report, if measures are not taken to prevent climate change and adapt agricultural practices.[13] Migrants typically first travel to nearby urban areas, with fewer continuing north to Mexico, and fewer still traveling all the way to the USA border.[19]

Climate migration such as that seen in the Dry Corridor is one of the sources of conflict at the US-Mexico border. In the US, Donald Trump has described migrations as “‘invasions’ of ‘gang members and very bad people,’” despite the US commissioner of the US Customs and border protection citing “crop failure” as a main driver.[15] Complicating this strained relationship is the fact that the “US has done more than any other country to cause global warming,” and thus are at least somewhat responsible for the conditions of these migrants.[15]

Improvement in the region will need to be addressed from multiple angles, including providing short-term food security and assistance, addressing climate change on a global scale, and sustainable development initiatives to promote robust crop production in these areas facing new climates.[20]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Chronology of the Dry Corridor: The impetus for resilience in Central America. Agronoticias: Agriculture News from Latin America and the Caribbean". Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. 2017-01-06. Retrieved 2019-05-04.
  2. ^ Gustavo, Palencia (2018). "Drought Leaves up to 2.8 Million Hungry in Central America". Scientific American.
  3. ^ "Erratic weather patterns in the Central American Dry Corridor leave 1.4 million people in urgent need of food assistance". Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. 25 April 2019. Archived from the original on 2021-05-29. Retrieved 2019-05-04.
  4. ^ "Central America Drought in El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua - Briefing Note" (PDF). ACAPS. 29 September 2015.
  5. ^ Looney, Robert (April 9, 2019). "Climate Refugees, Guatemala's Latest Export". Milken Institute Review. Retrieved 2019-05-04.
  6. ^ "El Niño and its human toll" (PDF). Catholic Relief Services. 2016.
  7. ^ Moloney, Anastasia (2018-09-07). "Two million risk hunger after drought in Central America - U.N". Reuters. Retrieved 2019-05-04.
  8. ^ "Drought Leaves up to 2.8 Million Hungry in Central America". Scientific American. Retrieved 2019-12-29.
  9. ^ "Erratic weather patterns in the Central American Dry Corridor leave 1.4 million people in urgent need of food assistance | World Food Programme". www.wfp.org. 25 April 2019. Retrieved 2020-12-16.
  10. ^ Gotlieb Y. The Central American Dry Corridor: a consensus state- ment and its background. Revista Mesoamericana de Biodiversidad y Cambio Climático. 2019;3:42–51.
  11. ^ "Central America: Drought - 2014-2017". ReliefWeb. 16 December 2018. Retrieved 2019-05-04.
  12. ^ "Guatemala drought leaves hundreds of thousands hungry". Al Jazeera. 29 Jun 2016. Retrieved 2019-05-04.
  13. ^ a b c Masters, Jeff. "Fifth Straight Year of Central American Drought Helping Drive Migration". Scientific American Blog Network. Retrieved 2019-12-29.
  14. ^ "Special Report: Second consecutive year of failed yields for subsistence farmers in Central America's Dry Corridor". GEOGLAM Crop Monitor. October 21, 2019. Archived from the original on 2019-12-29. Retrieved 2019-12-29.
  15. ^ a b c Wernick, Adam (February 6, 2019). "Climate change is the overlooked driver of Central American migration". Public Radio International. Archived from the original on 2019-02-07. Retrieved 2019-12-29.
  16. ^ Leiva, Noe (March 16, 2019). "Drought subjects Central America to pests, loss of crops and lack of drinking water". The Tico Times Costa Rica. Archived from the original on 2019-03-16. Retrieved 2019-12-29.
  17. ^ "Drought subjects Central America to pests, loss of crops and lack of drinking water". Retrieved 2019-12-29.
  18. ^ Balsari, S., Dresser, C., & Leaning, J. (2020). Climate Change, Migration, and Civil Strife. Current Environmental Health Reports, 1-11.
  19. ^ "How the Climate Crisis Is Driving Central American Migration". Climate Reality. 2019-05-31. Retrieved 2020-12-16.
  20. ^ Gotlieb, Y., & Girón, J. D. G. (2020). The role of land use conversion in shaping the land cover of the Central American Dry Corridor. Land Use Policy, 104351.
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