Drought and Vulnerability in Mexico’s Forest Ecosystems

Abstract

In Mexico, some regions have frequent droughts, while others are beginning to experience their presence and impacts. Therefore, this work aimed to characterize drought in the last twenty-one years and evaluate the vulnerability of forests to this phenomenon. The method consisted of applying the standard precipitation index (SPI-12), calculating the drought vulnerability index (DVI), and applying it to the country’s forest areas. The results confirm that forests are vulnerable to drought for five main reasons. First, geographically, the country has large arid and semiarid areas with little natural precipitation. Second, droughts frequently occur and are present in the national territory, covering from 25% to 75% of the surface in recent years. Third, the socioeconomic characteristics of the population living in municipalities and forest territories increase the vulnerability of these areas to drought. Fourth, drought can trigger other catastrophes, such as fires or forest pests. Fifth, the combination of two or more of the above in the same territory magnifies exposure to drought for both forests and people. Temperate forest ecosystems, in particular, have been subject to the prevalence of drought in recent years and, thus, should receive more attention. Finally, technical and cartographic elements, such as those presented herein, are essential for supporting the formulation of proactive forest response plans to address drought events.