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Lake Poopo

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Lake Poopo
Question 1
There has been a detriment that has severely impacted humans, marine life, and animals
for many decades owing to changes in climate and the buildup of greenhouse gases as a result of
advances in technology. This has been the case. Because of this, alterations have had a
deleterious influence on bodies of water such as lake Poopo.
You may find this lake in west-central Bolivia. It is located 3,686 meters above sea level in a
slight dip in the Altiplano. Although it was just 8 to 10 feet (2.4 to 3 meters) deep, this lake was
historically the second biggest in the nation, covering 977 square miles (2,530 square km) at low
level and computing roughly 56 miles (90 km) long as well as 20 miles (32 km) broad (Perreault,
2020). Nonetheless, the lake had dried up entirely by December 2015 due to the combined
impacts of climate change-exacerbated famine and silt accumulation brought on by the local
mining sector.
Lake Poopó was historically the source of food and income for the people living in
Bolivia. It is the second biggest lake in the country after Lake Titicaca and is situated at 3,686
meters. It has dried up entirely today. Dead fish and birds are mute witnesses to the once lush
landscape, now a barren wasteland. The evaporation rate of the lake has quadrupled since the
1990s when global warming began to raise local temperatures. It dried up because there wasn't a
long enough period of typical rainfall to restore its waters (Perreault, 2020). The results were
disastrous for the local flora and wildlife and the people who relied on fishing in the lake for a
livelihood. Before Lake Poopó dried up, the land around it was marshy due to water filtering
through the lake bottom. This meant that few people lived there. However, a revival of the rain
cycle and the flow of water from the Desaguadero and Márquez rivers allowed the lake to be
refilled with water and returned to life. The lake's evaporation rate increased by a factor of three
over the following two decades as a direct result of global warming's effect on the local
temperature.
However, Lake Poopó's apparent decline is not solely due to the evident average world
temperature increase. Specialists also point to the persistent drought caused by the El Nio
weather phenomena and the excessive consequences caused by humans. Desaguadero River,
which originates in Bolivia's biggest lake, Lake Titicaca, supplies most water to Lake Poopó.
Water managers have lately allowed the river's flow into Poopó to diminish to a trickle, even
though this runs counter to the documented management plan (Farthing et al, 2017). As far as
Borre is concerned, the water level in Titicaca is not an issue. No amount of pleading with
officials has resulted in more frequent releases of control gates. Water is being removed from
other uses to support industrial agriculture and mineral extraction. Also, when moisture is
supplied, sedimentation from the construction and mining in the vicinity causes the river to
choke.
Despite conservation measures sponsored by a European Union grant for around $15
million, Lake Poopó eventually dried up because it did not get a sufficient amount of typical
rainfall to replace its water supply. The effects on the region's flora and fauna and the economic
repercussions were disastrous, particularly for people who had earned their livelihood from
fishing inside the lake (Sánchez Miranda et al., 2017). Settlement on the banks of Lake Poopó,
which had been marshy due to water filtering into the lake bottom in the past, had been scarce
for a long time; nonetheless, the vanishing of the lake required a large number of people to
migrate.
Question 2
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However, naturalist Carlos Capriles has confirmed that almost 200 different animal and
plant species thrived in this area, despite its aggressive appearance. The Altiplano is teeming
with wild animals and plants, despite popular belief to the contrary. According to research,
approximately 131 plant species call Poopó Lake home, with 111 being native to land and 20
being native to the water (Fericelli, 2018). There was a wide variety of queues, tall reeds, and
bushes among them. Water plants were generally algae and macrophytes.
"The levels of evaporation and evapotranspiration significantly surpass rain
precipitation," adds Coronado. "In addition, erosion brought on by infiltration contributes to the
problem." The variables that contribute to global warming have made this problem much worse.
Government officials have confirmed that over the last 56 years, the minimum temperature
within the Poopó Lake basin has grown by 2.06 degrees Celsius, speeding up the rate at which
water evaporates. Sanchez et al., (2017) said the lake had lost between 4 and 5 millimeters of
water each day due to evaporation. The mining and agricultural operations led to the diversion of
the lake's feeder streams, another primary factor contributing to the lake's drying up and
disappearing. This is the situation with the Desaguadero River, which is responsible for up to 90
percent of Poopó's water supply, according to some estimates.
The lake was exposed to extensive exploitation: the waters of its tributaries were
exploited for the cultivation of the fields of neighboring nations, and Poopó was irrevocably
contaminated by mining enterprises working in the districts of Oruro and Potos. Every day,
millions of tons of sediments are washed into the lake. These sediments are a result of the
desertification as well as soil erosion that has occurred surrounding the basin; nevertheless, they
are also hazardous waste from the mining activities that are located nearby (Pillco-Zolá et al.,
2019). Since the beginning of the Colonial period, mining has been Oruro's primary source of
economic activity. It is believed there are more than 300 mining encampments in the area. The
vast majority of these encampments discharge their toxic effluents into the 15 to 23 streams that
flow into the lake, polluting the lake with heavy metals like cadmium, zinc, arsenic, and lead
(Gardon et al., 2019). According to calculations made by the Poopó Lake Basin Program
(Programa de la Cuenca del Lago Poopó), which was established in 2010 to address the lake's
impending demise, 2,000 tons of solid minerals are added to the lake every single day (Farthing,
2017). An additional issue that has contributed to the deterioration of the lake's condition is the
enormous deficit or lack of stability in the subbasin of Poopó Lake.
The lake's demise may primarily be attributed to the accumulation of an excessive
amount of silt. "Since it is an endorheic region, its water cannot leave, and the sediments remain
where they are. The lake is almost perfectly level; its surface has no discernible slope. Because
the depth is just 50 cm, it is only around one meter deep even when there has been a lot of water.
In Lake Poopó, even a minimal rise or fall in water level has a pronounced effect on the lake's
size because of its shallowness and the near-flatness of its borders (Zolá, & Bengtsson, 2006).
When the lake's surface area is reduced, its evaporative loss is diminished, and vice versa if it
rains. The lake's water equilibrium depends on how large the lake is. Knowing the connection
between water depth and lake surface area is necessary to calculate the water level from river
inflows, rainfall, and lake evaporation.
Question 3
A large variety of flamingos were present among the different types of birds. In addition,
it served as a resting place for a large number of migrating birds and served as a habitat for
ducks. This precarious equilibrium was upset when the lake dried up. As a result, most of these
species have been forced to relocate since they no longer have access to their native environment
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(Fericelli, 2018). Others, such as fish and amphibians, have succumbed to death for no apparent
reason.
The three settlements of Urus indigenous peoples, who lived on the lake's eastern coast,
were most hit by the lake drying up. At the same time, many fishing cooperatives and indigenous
Campesino groups also suffered. Since the pre-Hispanic, Colonial, and modern eras have
marginalized the Uru people to varying degrees, they have almost no land of their own. They
have traditionally subsisted on fishing, hunting, and collecting in the lake and neighboring
marshes (Blanco, 2018). Because of the lake's depletion, many Urus residents have left the
region, and their economic situation has worsened. The lake's drying has been compounded by
massive water withdrawals for industrial, agricultural, and municipal purposes, while climate
change is also a contributing factor. As a result, vulnerable ecosystems and disadvantaged
communities are even more at risk due to the interplay of power relations involved in today's
patterns of resource use and regional environmental change.
Since the lake was an essential component in the local bioclimatic regulatory system, the
loss of a significant lakefront ecosystem may correspond with an increase in the degree to which
the area's climate varies. This is according to the opinions of several experts. In other words,
regular cycles of the lake's life were tightly related to the weather patterns in the area, which
means that it is probable that the aridity surrounding the lake's side may rise as well (Gardon et
al., 2019). The absence of rainfall intensity and the reservoir drying up have devastating effects
on the social fabric of the neighboring communities, particularly the Uru Murato, which is
susceptible to hardship. They have seen how the imminent collapse of one's agricultural system
and the absence of fish and migratory birds threaten their food production to the point where it
may drive immigrants to come. Angel Flores, the head of a local citizens' group trying to save
Poopó, said that the government ignored warnings.
The mining industry is Bolivia's second-largest export earner, behind natural gas. Still,
environmentalists and local activists believe the government has mishandled the country's
precious water resources and neglected the pervasive pollution it causes. More than a hundred
mines are located upstream, and Huanuni, the largest state-owned tin mine in Bolivia, was one of
the mines that dumped untreated tailings into the tributaries of Poopó (Grover & Krantzberg,
2012). Our research showed that the region north of the lake, near the city of Oruro, had the most
significant increases in water losses. The river's water has been exploited for mining and
agriculture, and there is a lot of human activity, urban expansion, and new motorways in this
region (Gardon et al., 2019). Quinoa production in Bolivia grew by 45.5% between 1980 and
2011, making it the country's primary agricultural export. Due to its rising popularity, quinoa
production has surged by 60% in only five years. This demonstrates how susceptible a site like
Lake Poopó can be when connections between the earth, human politics, and water and human
cycles are severed (Fericelli, 2018). Human actions have contributed to the ecological calamity,
yet there is one cause for optimism.
In conclusion, mining and agricultural activities have had an impact on Lake Poopo by
diverting its feeder streams, which is a major reason in the lake's drying up and disappearance.
The Desaguadero River, which provides as much as 90% of Poopó's water, is in a similar
predicament. If the government had taken the necessary precautions, the lake may have been
protected from evaporation.
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References
Perreault, T. (2020). Climate change and climate politics: parsing the causes and effects of the
drying of Lake Poopó, Bolivia. Journal of Latin American Geography, 19(3), 26-46.
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De Loma, J., Tirado, N., Ascui, F., Levi, M., Vahter, M., Broberg, K., & Gardon, J. (2019).
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Lake Poopó, Bolivia. Science of the Total Environment, 657, 179-186.
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A., ... & Sánchez Miranda, O. (2017). Community exposure and vulnerability to water
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