Agricultural Drought Phenomenon in Latin America with Focus on Brazil - Monitoring and Predicting Agricultural Drought: A Global Study - page 158

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Figure 12.2 Spatial variation in precipitation distribution across Brazil.

re gion, the eastern part of the Amazon (tropical zone), and the southern re-
gi on (extra-tropical zone) are influenced most by the ENSO phenomenon.
N ormally, during the positive phase of the ENSO, the northeastern region
of Brazil experiences a decrease in seasonal rainfall and an increase in the
in tensity of the droughts, but the south of Brazil experiences an increase in
precipitation (Cunha, 1999; Martelo, 2000).

M onitoring Agricultural Drought
Although droughts reduce agricultural production significantly in Latin
America, only limited attempts have been made to monitor or mitigate
them (Brunini et al., 2000). One of the institutions that is directly involved