Chile’s Piñera says drought is “silent earthquake” and announces new fund

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Chilean President Sebastián Piñera said Sunday that the drought is a “silent earthquake” that has been affecting the country for 13 years and announced a fund of 100 million pesos (US$130 million) to help small farmers affected by the lack of water.

“This extensive drought has meant a rainfall deficit of between 60% and 80% compared to a normal year and has affected the flows of our rivers, which are close to their historic minimums,” the conservative president denounced in a rural area of the capital region.

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According to Greenpeace, Chile, which is experiencing its worst drought in six decades, is the country with the greatest water crisis in the entire western hemisphere.

The situation is especially critical in the central zone, where thousands of inhabitants receive water daily thanks to water trucks. This year, record highs were recorded in July, reaching 30 degrees Celsius in the middle of winter.

After declaring an agricultural emergency this week in the regions of Coquimbo, Valparaíso, O’Higgins, and Maule, Piñera added this Sunday the capital region, where 8 of the country’s 19 million inhabitants live.

The agricultural sector is key to the Chilean economy: it’s a Mediterranean and semi-arid climate stretching from the Atacama Desert to the Biobío in the central-southern zone, makes the country an export power.

“We will continue to strengthen this network of water desalination plants, especially in the regions of Coquimbo and Valparaíso, the most affected by water shortages, and we will continue to take advantage of natural aquifers, injecting water into them in times of abundance,” Piñera announced.

The governor said that it is necessary to “become aware that water is life” and called for creating “a solid culture of caring for water as a true treasure”.

Environmental organizations denounce that the Chilean water model, whose origin dates back to the neoliberal economy established during the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet (1973-1990), has aggravated the drought that the country is experiencing as a consequence of the climate crisis.

Chile is one of the countries with the highest level of privatization globally, and experts estimate that 80% of the country’s water resources are currently in private hands.