Climate and Geomorphologic-related Disasters in Latin America

Abstract

Because most of its territory is located in tropical and equatorial areas, climatic factors are a main driver of natural disasters in Latin America. For instance, intense tropical rainfall in mountain areas is responsible for some of the most catastrophic floods and landslides in Latin America, such as those that occur in northern Venezuela, Colombia, and southeastern Brazil. The El Nino-Southern Oscillation also triggers a variety of geomorphologic hazards along the continent such as the floods, landslides, and coastal erosion that affect desert areas of the Pacific coast and the floods and landslides that affect southeastern Brazil and the La Plata Basin. In Central America and Mexico, hurricane landfalls from the Eastern Pacific and Atlantic Ocean bring intense rainfall, winds, and storm surges that cause devastating floods and landslides. Many of the devastating effects of natural hazards and disasters have been aggravated by increased human-induced vulnerability in various Latin American regions. Human-induced desertification in Patagonia and accelerated fluvial erosion in south and southeastern Brazil are examples of negative human effects on the Latin American landscape that aggravate the effects of natural disasters. Climatic trends in South America during the last few decades, in particular in the Argentinean plains, have also contributed to flood aggravation.