What did the fox say? Drought, frost and loss in Colca Valley

Unfortunately, it seems that the fox, the seagulls, the flowers – and don Pedro – were right after all (see blog post “What does the fox say” 25 november 2013). The 12^th of December, I attended a seminar organized by the meteorological institute Senamhi, and the director assured us that the rain would come as normal. However, as often happens, the meteorologists were wrong, and the local reading of signs in animals and plants proved to be right.

The rain season normally lasts from December to March, and it rained for a few days during the Celebration of the Virgin of Immaculate Conception in December, but now it hasn’t rained for more than two months and people are worried. The crops of potatoes, maize and beans suffer not only from the drought, but also from the frosts that have been attacking the region. Thousands of farmers in Colca Valley are directly affected; most of them have lost everything. The drought is not only causing distress in the highlands; now the farmers in the Majes irrigation project in the lower pampa are also starting to worry for their future water supply. The Condoroma dam in Callalli district is currently storing 50 % of its maximum capacity, and the volume of the water let out and into the Majes Canal has been reduced from 12,54 to 11 cubic metres per second.

In today’s newspaper “Correo” (which covers Arequipa region), the mayor of Sibayo – the neigbouring district of Callalli – expresses his concerns: “We know that this issue of global warming is affecting the water resources” [….] “The highlands have already been declared to be in a state of emergency, because the production of potatoes and maize is totally lost. All the production in Colca is totally lost. The people are very worried. It is also affecting the camelids [llamas and alpacas] and cattle.” (Raul Mamani quoted in Correo, 20 February 2014, page 15)

I left Chivay in January to do a field study in the Majes irrigation project, thinking that I would escape the heavy rains that usually come in the highlands in January and February. But it never came. Farmers have been desperately waiting, and ten days ago they even organized a church mass and took the Virgin Asunta out in a procession, begging God and the Virgin to send rain. Their prayers have not been heard yet.

Now I find myself among farmers in the lowlands who irrigate their crops with water stored in the Colca highlands, while the farmers in Colca suffer from drought. However, there is no easy solution. Majes has now approximately 120.000 inhabitants – more than in all the Colca Valley – and among them are migrants from Colca and other regions of Peru who have been attracted to the warm climate and thriving economy. However, as this is really a desert – they are all totally dependent on the Majes Canal bringing water from Colca.