Blogs
Climate change is a huge issue in the world today, it is causing a variety of problems for many people across the globe. But I'm going to focus on climate change within Southwestern Ontario's agriculture.
The Problem:
Climate change is effecting Southwestern Ontario's farming production and process causing the growing and harvesting of crops and the raising and profit of livestock to be much more difficult.
The Evidence:
- Over the past 60 years, the average temperature in Ontario has increased by 1.4 degrees
- There have been changes in pests, weeds, invasive species and diseases
- Asian soybean rust (a soybean fungal disease)
- Current challenges will increase, for example;
- Winter injury and frost damage to crops
- Severe heat
- Drought
- Cooler temperatures during growing seasons
- Heavy rain during harvesting seasons
- Our agriculture is highly dependent on solar radiation, temperature, and precipitation. Any unbalance within these could cause serious damage to our agricultural patterns
- Climate change could result in;
- A shift in climate and agricultural zones near the poles
- Changes in production patterns due to high or low temperatures
- A boost in agricultural activity due to the Carbon Dioxide in the air
- A change in precipitation patterns
- Increased vulnerability of the poor and the landless
- The agricultural sector is one of the main gas emission forces
- Carbon Dioxide emissions linked to deforestation (burning of forests to make room for farms)
- almost all
- Methane emissions from enteric fermentation in cattle
- 54%
- Nutritious Oxide emissions from fertilizer applications
- 80%
- Carbon Dioxide emissions linked to deforestation (burning of forests to make room for farms)
