May 18, 2012
Climate Change and Agricultural Efficiency
The link between climate change and agricultural efficiency is becoming less of a trivial factoid and more of a serious determinant as UN reports begin to hint at a bleak future. Human intervention has dramatically increased the atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide and a host of other pollutants, a development that constantly changes conditions for agricultural environments. Research initiatives conducted by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change have exposed the effects of these noxious emissions and the resulting climate shifts on the world’s most prevalent food sources.
Elevated temperatures have already perpetuated severe droughts in Africa, resulting in the quadrupling of millet, maize, and sorghum grain prices. Aside from its direct effects, temperature increases cause more frequent and intense fluctuations in the weather, a staple talking point in the UN’s summit on climate change 2009. More storms and less predictable amounts of rainfall cause unwanted soil erosion, a major detriment to steady crop yields. The world must combine advocacy, research, and effective legislation to quell and hopefully reverse these trends.
The current situation might look bleak, and if things will keep the way they are going situation might get even worst. But, there are lots of things that can be done to improve the current affairs and many actions are taken every day. Here is an idea on how to protect the world food from Ted.com:
You should also take a look at how Louise Fresco think we can feed the whole world:
Climate Change Consequences
Research on climate change published in the past month has pointed to the troubling and increasingly destructive impact that climate change has had and could have on the world.
Studies by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the international organization that is the world’s foremost authority on climate change, have found that:
- One-quarter to one-third of all animal and plant species will be at an exacerbated risk of extinction if average global temperatures rise by 1.5 to 2.5 degrees Celsius.
- Economic losses from disasters and events associated with climate change since 1980 exceed 200 billion USD per annum. Cultural and ecological losses are hard to quantify but have been equally high.
- Heavy precipitation due to cyclones as well as widespread droughts in dry areas are both expected to intensify in the 21st century.
- By 2020, up to 250 million Africans will face water shortages and agriculture yields in some African countries could be slashed by up to 50 percent.
- Some climate change impacts, like ice sheet loss, high sea level rise, flooding of low-lying areas and river deltas, and completely altered coast lines, would be irreversible.
Here is what Al-Gore thinks about the climate crisis:
There is no doubt that we must start put much more effort into helping the climate restore its normal “behavior” there are many innovative ideas and solutions to accomplish that, here is another idea on how things could be different: