Climate Change and U.S.-Mexico Border Communities describes the forces that shape the U.S.-Mexico border region—population changes, urban expansion, economic development, and political processes—and that affect the vulnerability of the region to climate change, discussing how communities and agencies might adapt to offset these impacts, with an emphasis on cross-border collaboration.
Citation:
Wilder, M., G. Garfin, P. Ganster, H. Eakin, P. Romero-Lankao, F. Lara-Valencia, A. A. Cortez-Lara, S. Mumme, C. Neri, and F. Muñoz-Arriola. 2013. “Climate Change and U.S.- Mexico Border Communities.” In Assessment of Climate Change in the Southwest United States: A Report Prepared for the National Climate Assessment, edited by G. Garfin, A. Jardine, R. Merideth, M. Black, and S. LeRoy, 340–384. A report by the Southwest Climate Alliance. Washington, DC: Island Press.
Margaret Wilder (University of Arizona)
Gregg Garfin (University of Arizona)
Paul Ganster (Institute for Regional Studies of the Californias, San Diego State University)
Hallie Eakin (Arizona State University)
Patricia Romero-Lankao (NCAR)
Francisco Lara-Valencia (Arizona State University)
Alfonso A. Cortez-Lara (Colegio de la Frontera Norte)
Stephen Mumme (Colorado State University)
Carolina Neri (National Autonomous University of Mexico)
Francisco Muñoz-Arriola (Scripps Institution of Oceanography)
Key Findings
Climate change exposes the populations in the border region to uneven impacts, due to cultural, institutional, and economic differences.
Transboundary cooperation is essential to build climate-change adaptive capacity on both sides of the border and to promote the best outcomes.
Projected climate changes will add pressure on severely stressed water systems and may exacerbate existing water supply vulnerabilities.
Social, economic, and political asymmetries in the border region create challenges for planning and designing effective adaptation strategies.
Wetland ecosystems, such as the Colorado River delta—a hotspot of biodiversity—are vulnerable to reduced precipitation and extended drought.
Figure Gallery
Figure 16.1: Western portion of the U.S.-Mexico border region. Source: EPA (2011).
Figure 16.2: Change in the number of days with a maximum temperature greater than 100°F (38°C). The top map shows the change between the NARCCAP (Mearns et al. 2009) multimodel average for 1971–2000 (lower left) and the average for 2041–2070 (lower right). Map generated by Laura Stevens.
Figure 16.3: Population density in U.S.-Mexico border region. Population density shading refers to the areas on either side of the border, and not the borderline. Reproduced from EPA (2011).
Figure 16.4: Population growth in the western portion of the U.S.-Mexico border region (2000–2010). Adapted from Good Neighbor Environmental Board 14th Report (GNEB 2011). Source: U.S. Census Bureau and Instituto Nacional de Estadistica y Geografia (INEGI).
Figure 16.5: Protected areas in western portion of U.S.-Mexico border region. Source: Laird- Benner and Ingram (2011) reprinted with permission from Taylor & Francis.
Figure 16.6: Over-drafted aquifers in Mexico. Note the concentration of these in northeast Baja California, along the coast of Sonora, and in the Rio Grande/Río Bravo watershed. Source: CONAGUA (2011, chap. 2, 34).
Figure 16.7: Areas in the border region of Mexico affected by saltwater intrusion or saline soil. Note the concentration of these problems in the irrigation districts of northeastern Baja California and along the coast of Sonora, as well as in the Juarez Valley. Source: CONAGUA (2011, chap. 2, 35).
Figure 16.8: Water use in Mexico’s border region (includes Region 1, Peninsula Baja California; Region II, Northwest; and Region VI, Rio Bravo). Adapted from CONAGUA (2011, annexes, 128-129, 133).
Figure 16.9: Rio Grande Basin. Source: Lacewell et al. (2010).