The water level of Lake Titicaca, between Bolivia and Peru, has dropped this week to records considered historic as a result of the long period of low rainfall in the region. The confirmed appearance of a new episode of the El Niño climatic-meteorological phenomenon could aggravate the situation, endangering not only the ecosystem and species common in this region at more than 3,000 meters of altitude, but also the livelihood and the supply of drinking water to thousands of people.
The waters of the Titicaca reached their historic low last Monday. The water station in Huatajata “presents a value of 2.92 (meters) and is seven centimeters below its minimum historical level,” which occurred in 1996, Jhon Chura, from the hydrology department of the National Service, told Efe. of Meteorology and Hydrology (Senamhi), of Bolívia.
John Chura has warned that the trend that has been observed is a decrease of 1 to 3 centimeters per week, making the level the lowest since periodic controls began in 1984.
The changes have been noticed mainly in the “smaller lake”, since the water has moved considerably away from the shore in the southeastern part, added this Senamhi expert.
Chura mentioned that the drop in lake level has occurred since April, despite the fact that that time in the Bolivian highlands is a rainy season.
“Generally increases are expected in mid-February, March and April because it is the rainy season (…) this has affected the descent of the lake and since there was no contribution (of precipitation) there has been a decrease,” said Chura.
The specialist mentioned that this situation could have an impact on fish farming activity, so he considered that the relevant entities and scientists carry out “measurements” to establish if there have been “chemical changes”, as well as the levels of salinity or oxygen in those waters.
Titicaca is the highest navigable lake in the world, at about 3,800 meters above sea level, in a total of more than 8,500 square kilometers, and serves as a natural border between Bolivia and Peru.
Bolivia is going through one of the most extreme droughts in recent years and, according to experts, the situation could be more dramatic since the country is just transitioning into the El Niño phenomenon, characterized by a lack of rain.
The Government reported that practically a third of the country’s 340 municipalities declared a disaster due to the lack of water that affects crops, livestock and supplies of liquid for human consumption.
The drought and rising temperatures have also accelerated the melting of glaciers in the Andes mountain range and could have consequences on the country’s food and hydroelectric security, according to experts.
