Climate resilience in agriculture needs to build scale through on-ground interventions and global collaborations
The impacts of climate change on agriculture are a global concern. India is also witnessing severe spells of climate change. According to a Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) and Down to Earth (DTE) report, in 2022, extreme weather events adversely impacted 1.96 million hectares (ha) of the crop area. The report goes on to mention that the country witnessed extreme weather events on 241 out of 273 days. As per the Climate Transparency Report 2022, during 2016-2021, severe weather developments such as cyclones, floods, flash floods, and landslides caused damage to crops in more than 36 million hectares and the destruction has led to a $3.75 billion loss for farmers in India.
Higher temperatures adversely affect crop yields. Different crops have specific temperature requirements for optimal growth, and when temperatures exceed these thresholds, it can lead to reduced yields. Heat stress can also impact crop flowering, fruit set, and overall productivity. Climate change causes shifts in rainfall patterns, leading to more frequent and intense droughts or floods. Both scenarios can have detrimental effects on agriculture. Hence, climate resilience has emerged as the key in climate risk management which involves building and strengthening the capability of agricultural ecosystems in anticipating, adapting, and recovering from climate change impacts and extreme weather events such as heat stress, floods, dominance of pests, severe storms, etc. In other words, building climate resilience involves anticipating potential climate change impacts and preparing for them in advance. This includes conducting vulnerability assessments, monitoring climate data, and using climate forecasting tools to understand future climate scenarios. However, there are two ways to look at the roadmap to build climate resilience in the agriculture sector.
The first one is on-ground interventions. By being proactive, farmers and stakeholders in the agricultural sector can take appropriate measures to reduce risks, such as adjusting planting schedules, diversifying crops, or implementing water supply and management strategies.
Farmers can alter agricultural practices to enhance soil fertility and opt for efficient water use, crop diversification, and crop insurance to build adaptability. Soil health in particular defines farmers' capability to produce crops. To restore soil quality impacted by climate change or adverse weather events, farmers can opt for intercropping and crop rotation and efficient application of fertilizers for preventing soil erosion and degradation. Development of climate-resilient crop varieties, promoting drought-resilient crop production such as millets, roll out of National Action Plan on Climate Change, State Action Plans on Climate Change, etc. are all moving in the right direction.
It's worth noting that Ashwini Kumar Choubey, Union Minister of State for Environment, Forest and Climate Change, recently said that addressing climate change needs global collaboration and collective action. And that brings us to the second aspect of climate resilience interventions through collaborations beyond borders. Sub-Saharan Africa is known to be the region that is susceptible to climate change. And, how countries like Mozambique, Ghana, etc. managed to build broad-based adaptability and resilience mechanisms and strengthen agricultural productivity would be a great learning experience for us. The common agricultural policy of the EU and the Build Back Better Plan of the US are some prominent examples of broader global collaborations. Even minor changes in weather patterns can significantly impact farmers' livelihoods and the nation's overall economic health.
(The writer is MD, GRM Overseas)
