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Barren Lives: Drought shocks and agricultural vulnerability in the Brazilian Semi-Arid

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  • Lucas de Almeida Nogueira da Costa
  • André Albuquerque Sant?Anna
  • Carlos Eduardo Frickman Young

Abstract

This paper studies the effects of drought shocks in a vulnerable environment – the Brazilian Semi-Arid. We analyze the impact of drought shocks, measured as deviations from historical averages, on agricultural outcomes and land-use decisions in a region that suffers recurrently with drought. After controlling for municipality and year fixed effects, we use weather shocks to exactly identify outcomes. Our benchmark results show substantial effects on the loss of crop area and on the value of agricultural output. By investigating distributional effects, we are able to show that crops related to family farming suffer more from drought shocks. We follow our investigation by testing heterogeneity effects and show that adequate water provision and maintenance of forest cover help in reducing the impact of drought shocks. Finally, we show that drought shocks in the previous year affect deforestation in the following year.

Suggested Citation

  • Lucas de Almeida Nogueira da Costa & André Albuquerque Sant?Anna & Carlos Eduardo Frickman Young, 2020. "Barren Lives: Drought shocks and agricultural vulnerability in the Brazilian Semi-Arid," Documentos de Trabajo 18213, The Latin American and Caribbean Economic Association (LACEA).
    • Handle: RePEc:col:000518:018213
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Drought; Climate Change; Agricultural Output; Brazilian Semi-Arid;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • Q15 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Agriculture - - - Land Ownership and Tenure; Land Reform; Land Use; Irrigation; Agriculture and Environment
    • Q54 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Climate; Natural Disasters and their Management; Global Warming

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