Extreme Weather in Chile

 Chile is no stranger to extreme weather and in recent years, Chile has experienced some of the most drastic changes due in part to climate change.  According to SpaceRef, “In the northern part of Chile one of the world’s driest deserts is flooding and in the south some of the planet’s wettest woodlands are burning.”  The desert flooding is due to the rains in the Andes.  The water is pouring into the Atacama Desert which is normally one of the driest places on Earth.  However, due to the flooding, the waterfall that had run dry for 10 years is now once again flowing.  In the south, the record-breaking temperatures have caused forest fires burning thousands of acres of land.  The high temperatures, low humidity, high winds and drought conditions are the reason why the wildfires are so large.  

This is a NASA satellite image of the fires in the southern region of Chile

What has Chile done about the recent extreme weather conditions that have impacted the country?  In the south, where the extreme temperatures have caused hundreds of fires, the government has declared some regions a disaster area to assist with funding to combat the destruction.  In the northern region that has been impacted by flooding, President Sebastian Pinera declared a “zone of emergency” to assist the region devastated by the heavy rains.  Moving forward, more needs to be done in Chile to keep up with climate change.  In a Straight Times article, Park Williams, a hydroclimatologist  at Columbia University in New York quoted, "Chile needs to be thinking about how to adapt to climate change, as it has such an isolated climate that makes it more vulnerable to droughts.  For the last several decades, temperatures have risen, and precipitation has declined in central Chile, making it more susceptible to wildfires."

Time will tell if Chile can afford to keep neglecting the ongoing issue of extreme weather.  For now, it seems that there are no pro-active solutions to the problem.    

References:

Extreme Weather in Chile Causing Catastrophic Fires - SpaceRef

https://www.nasa.gov/image-feature/goddard/2019/extreme-weather-in-chile-causing-catastrophic-fires

World's driest desert floods as extreme weather hits Chile | The Straits Times

Mass Wasting in Chile

The general term for mass wasting is any process of soil and rock erosion that is driven by gravity.  There are no specific triggers although there are some factors that can contribute to the severity or frequency of mass wasting.  Some of the most common examples of mass wasting are landslides, rock falls and mudslides.  The mass movements can be highly destructive and dangerous.  

In Chile, debris flows such as landslides are often triggered by heavy rainfall.  Therefore, the middle and southern regions are more susceptible to mass wasting.  Those areas have higher amounts of precipitation.  However, the northern regions of Chile are at low risk due to the extremely dry climate.  According to Think Hazard - Chile - Landslide , Chile is classified as high susceptibility for landslides and also has impacts due to climate change.  This website states that, “Climate change is likely to alter slope and bedrock stability through changes in precipitation and/or temperature. It is difficult to determine future locations and timing of large rock avalanches, as these depend on local geological conditions and other non-climatic factors”.  

Unfortunately, Chile does not have a warning system or preventive measures for these types of hazards.  In the past, the country has declared a state of emergency after the hazard and then action is taken to assist people.  For remote locations, airlift rescue is sometimes required to evacuate people.  Due to the fact that Chile is prone to this type of hazard, it should be a priority to government officials to expand their warning systems and take precautionary measures.  

The aftermath of the landslide at Villa Santa Lucia in southern Chile

Sources:

Think Hazard - Chile - Landslide 

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