From 1991 to 2022, the average temperature at Mexico and the Caribbean has risen 0.3°C per decade, a record high since the beginning of 30-year climatologies in 1900, reveals the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).
In the report The State of the Climate in Latin America and the Caribbean 2022the organization warns that the extreme weather events and the climatic shocks are worsening, as the trend toward heating and sea level rise, with increasing impacts on countries and local communities.
The report indicates that rainfall in the central and eastern part of Mexico were between 40% and 60% below normal, while in northwestern Mexico and the Yucatan Peninsula, precipitation was 40% above normal.
Baja California recorded rainfall around 20% below normal in the extreme south, and between 10% and 20% above normal in the rest of the region.
High-precision satellite altimetry data covering January 1993 to June 2022 indicate that during this period, rates of sea level change on the Atlantic side of South America were higher than those on the Pacific side.
In addition, a comparable rate was observed in the subtropical North Atlantic and the Gulf of Mexico (3.60 millimeters ± 0.1 millimeters per year). In the tropical North Atlantic, around Central America and the southern Caribbean, the rate was 3.23 millimeters ± 0.1 millimeters per year during this period.
"In Mexico, Nuevo Leon and Tamaulipas were the most affected by drought in 2022. About 30% of Mexico experienced moderate to extreme drought throughout 2022. By May 2022, about 56% of Mexico was affected by moderate to exceptional drought," the report revealed.
The prolonged period of drought in Latin America and the Caribbean, influenced by the third consecutive year of La Niña generated the greatest damage in northeastern Mexico, the document explains.
Increasing risks
In 2022 alone, 1,153 people died in Latin America and the Caribbean as a result of phenomena related to storms and floods; the economic damage caused by droughts and storms was quantified at US$ 9 billion. This is the size of the impact of climate shocks as the region's temperature rises.
"Tropical cyclones, heavy rainfall and floods, as well as severe multi-year droughts, caused loss of life and multi-billion dollar economic damage throughout 2022. Rising sea levels and warming oceans pose increasing risks to livelihoods, ecosystems and economies in coastal zones," says WMO Secretary-General Petteri Taalas.
The report was released during an international convention on environment and development, organized in Havana, Cuba, and prior to a meeting of the Conference of Directors of Ibero-American Meteorological and Hydrological Services.
It highlights the importance of National Meteorological and Hydrological Services and regional climate centers in providing enhanced services to support climate adaptation and mitigation.
Sources: Excelsior, World Meteorological Organization