Pablo Huerta Mandez, Peru
Pablo is a farmer on the Andean slopes. To make better use of its limited water supply, the community has built a concrete reservoir costing USD 1,500. With this they use 1/7 of the water they used to.
“It barely rains, now. Year by year it’s less and less. I’ve farmed here for 10 years and there is more heat, which affects the plants and causes plagues. If the weather continues, people will only be able to cultivate half their land. The flow decreases, and water might dry out because of the heat. We’re very worried about climate change. The drip irrigation is very useful, and more profitable. It prevents erosion, and we have seen an improvement in our crops. We have a better income and larger harvests.“
It is this more efficient use of water which is helping farmers cope with less water, and which farmers across Peru will need to adopt as the impact of climate change becomes increasingly apparent.
Source: Oxfam