Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
warming potential of different GHGs is measured in terms of carbon diox-
ide equivalence (CO
2eq
), which is the warming effect exerted by one mol-
ecule of CO
2
over a given period of time, usually 20 or 100 years. Methane
and nitrous oxide have a global warming potential over a 100 year period
are about 23 CO
2eq
and 298 CO
2eq
, respectively.
Horticulture depends on natural calamities for example favorable cli-
mate leads to good crop yield and ensures food safety. Since horticulture
is the most affecting sector by climate change therefore, adaptation ap-
proaches need to be considered for survival of horticultural crops without
affecting the nutritional status. This manuscript reviews current knowl-
edge about the relationships between climate change, water, food and live-
lihood security.
19.2
AGRICULTURE, CLIMATE AND FOOD SECURITY
Agriculture is important for food security in two ways: it produces the
food, people eat and (perhaps even more important) it provides the prima-
ry source of livelihood for 36 percent of the world's total workforce. In the
heavily populated countries of Asia and the Pacific, this share ranges from
40 to 50%, and in sub-Saharan Africa, two-thirds of the working popula-
tion still make their living from agriculture (ILO, 2007). If agricultural
production in the low-income developing countries of Asia and Africa is
adversely affected by climate change, the livelihoods of large numbers of
the rural poor will be put at risk and their vulnerability to food insecurity
increased. Agriculture, forestry and fisheries are all sensitive to climate.
Their production processes are therefore likely to be affected by climate
change. In general, impacts are expected to be positive in temperate re-
gions and negative in tropical ones, but there is still uncertainly about how
projected changes will play out at the local level, and potential impacts
may be altered by the adoption of risk management measures and adapta-
tion strategies that strengthen preparedness and resilience.
The food security implications of changes in agricultural production
patterns and performance are of two kinds:
• Impacts on the production of food will affect food supply at the
global and local levels. Globally, higher yields in temperate regions
could offset lower yields in tropical regions. However, in many low-
income countries with limited financial capacity to trade and high
