The Almost Twice Weekly Newspaper for the Jaltemba Coast

Aug 26th, 2009 Page 3

Mexico Hit by Lowest Rainfall in 68 Years noel Randewich - Reuters go to original August 20, 2009 A tractor ploughs a hectare of land in the northern Mexican state of Chihuahua in a file photo. (Reuters/Tomas Bravo) Mexico City – Mexico is suffering from its driest year in 68 years, killing crops and cattle in the countryside and forcing the government to slow the flow of water to the crowded capital. Below-average rainfall since last year has left about 80 of Mexico's 175 largest reservoirs less than half full, said Felipe Arreguin, a senior official at the Conagua commission, which manages the country's water supply. "We have zones where the reservoirs are totally full but others that don't have even a drop of water," he said in an interview late on Tuesday. More than 1,000 cattle have been lost due to lack of rainfall, and up to 20 million tons of crops managed by 3.5 million small farmers are at risk of being lost, agriculture groups say. The arid northwest region of Mexico has been hardest hit, along with the central part of the country surrounding Mexico City where 20 million people live. Mexico typically has a rainy season from around June to October, topping up lakes and reservoirs that supply much of the country's water during the rest of the year. The El Nino weather phenomenon, a warming of the seas in the Pacific Ocean, has induced a dry spell in South America and is likely partly to blame for Mexico's lack of rain, experts say. Authorities have reduced the flow from the Cutzamala series of dams and rivers more than 60 miles long that supplies a quarter of Mexico City's water to ensure enough is available until next year's rainy season. Trucks are delivering water to some parts of the capital where cuts have made the flow of water intermittent. "If all we have is a bucketful, we wash up with a cloth, but not well, not like you should," said Maria de la Luz, who has sold chicken at a neighborhood market for 48 years. "Now is the worst it's been since I was a girl." Arreguin said the water situation in the capital was alarming but not yet a full emergency. "If it were a traffic light it would be yellow," Arreguin said. FARMERS HIT In Mexican states like San Luis, Aguascalientes and Colima, some farmers have been unable to successfully plant their crops because of a lack of rain, while others watched their corn and beans plants wilt. Authorities are handing out cash to small farmers in hard-hit areas. Four-fifths of Mexico's water resources are used to irrigate crops and the government is encouraging farmers to adopt more efficient methods over the long term. In neighboring Guatemala, the government is distributing emergency food to 56,000 families whose crops have been damaged. "This problem happens every year, but this year it seems particularly serious," said Guatemalan government official Juan Aguilar. Mexico's sugar crop was harvested before the drought set in, and coffee farms are mostly in unaffected areas. Already-taxed underground water accounts for most of the supply to Mexico City, an urban sprawl built over a drained lake bead, and will likely face more stress. Mexico has had slightly less rainfall over the past decade but there is insufficient data to say how much global warming can be blamed, Arreguin said. "How much of this phenomenon is from El Nino? How much is from climate change? The best thing is to hope for the best but prepare for the worst," Arreguin said. Mexico City officials are urging residents to conserve water by installing efficient shower faucets and to use buckets instead of hoses to wash their cars. (Additional reporting by Mica Rosenberg and Sarah Grainger; Editing by Cynthia Osterman)   SPORTS America tops Cruz Azul 3-2 in Mexico City derby Daniel Marquez came off the bench to score a goal in the final minute to give America a 3-2 win over Cruz Azul in Mexico City's derby match. ...More Mexico win knocks out Hastings Raul Rojas hit three doubles and scored three runs, and Mexico took advantage of seven errors by Germany in a 13-0 win at the Little League World Series on Monday. ...More Telemundo Networks Reach 8.7 Million Viewers For Rumbo Al Mundial: Mexico vs. USA World Cup Soccer Qualifying Match 8.7 million viewers watched Rumbo al Mundial: Mexico vs. USA World Cup Qualifying soccer match on the family of Telemundo networks. ..Click Here to Read More Mexico edges U.S. 2-1 in qualifier Mexican coach Javier Aguirre showed his relief after his team's 2-1 victory over the United States on Wednesday in a critical World Cup qualifier. ..Click Here to Read More Victory for Mexico Fans of Mexico celebrate the team's 5-0 win over USA …Continue Reading Click Here U.S.-Mexico link growing stronger Something strange happened in the closing minutes of the CONCACAF Gold Cup semifinal between the U.S. and Honduras last week in Chicago. …Continue Reading Click Here Costa Rica, Mexico reach Gold Cup semi-finals Alvaro Saborio scored twice to lead Costa Rica to a 5-1 victory over Guadeloupe and into a semi-finals showdown against Mexico in the CONCACAF Gold Cup.…Click Here To Read Article Mexican Boxing, Ready for a Comeback? Last year at about this time, Juan Manuel Marquez was proudly ranked in everyone's pound-for-pound list after losing a close and disputed war with Manny Pacquiao. ….Click Here To Read More Volleyball championship to go ahead in Mexico A high-profile women's volleyball championship will go ahead this summer in Mexico despite concerns about the recent outbreak of swine flu.….Click Here To Read More Gamecocks to face Mexican national team The South Carolina women's soccer team will play an exhibition against the Mexican national team in August.The school announced the match Monday. It will take place Aug. 21 at the MESA Soccer Complex in Greenville. ……Click Here To Read More Pulido leads Tigres UANL over Fire 2-1 Armando Pulido scored two goals to withstand a late penalty kick from Cuauhtemoc Blanco, and Tigres UANL beat the Chicago Fire 2-1 in the final match of SuperLiga group play Saturday night.……Click Here To Read More Mexico invited to Copa America Mexico has reversed course and will again participate in upcoming Copa Libertadores and Copa America tournaments. ……Click Here To Read Entire Article This Weekend in Mexico: B.J. Baldwin, Kendall Norman and Wayne Matlock all Hoping for Overall Repeats at Tecate SCORE Baja 500 While defending overall champions B.J. Baldwin in 4-wheel vehicles, Kendall Norman in motorcycles and Wayne Matlock in ATVs are all looking to repeat, there will be no shortage of former overall winners in the starting grid for this weekend’s 41st Annual Tecate SCORE Baja 500 desert race. ……Click Here To Read Entire Article 2009 CONCACAF Beach Soccer Championship Rescheduled For June 17-21  The qualifying tournament for the CONCACAF region for the 2009 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup will take place June 17-21 in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. The tournament was originally scheduled for April 29-May 3 but was postponed due to concerns over the outbreak of the H1N1 virus in Mexico.....More Mexican Boxing, Ready for a Comeback? Last year at about this time, Juan Manuel Marquez was proudly ranked in everyone's pound-for-pound list after losing a close and disputed war with Manny Pacquiao. Aside from the personal kick of being listed as an elite prize fighter, he also took pride in knowing that there were at least four other fellow Mexicans who could make a case for being there alongside him: Israel Vazquez, Juan Manuel's little brother, Rafael Marquez, Antonio Margarito, and Cristian Mijares. ....More      Chiapas by Bill Bell                       WEATHER Puerto Vallarta   SAN Pancho Weather  www.sanpanchoweather.com   Weather in Mexico Acapulco Loreto Puerto Vallarta Aguascalientes Los Mochis Queretaro Airport Cancun Manzanillo San Felipe Cozumel Mazatlan San Jose Del Cabo Cuernavaca Merida San Luis Potosi Durango Mexico City Santa Rosalia Ensenada Monterrey Tampico Guadalajara Morelia Tepic Guanajuato Oaxaca Veracruz Bahias De Huatulco Puebla Zacatecas Ixtapa Zihuatanejo Puerto Escondido   La Paz Puerto Penasco     Currency EXCHANGE Euro   Mexico Pesos 1.00 EUR = 18.7669 MXN       United States Dollars Mexico Pesos 1.00 USD = 13.1736 MXN       Canada Dollars   Mexico Pesos 1.00 CAD = 11.9994 MXN   Last Week   Euro Mexico Pesos 1.00 EUR = 18.2764 MXN United States Dollars Mexico Pesos 1.00 USD = 12.9571 MXN Canada Dollars Mexico Pesos 1.00 CAD = 11.7072 MXN