Climate and Ag in the news
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The US Environmental Protection Agency released a new report recently which describes the impacts of global warming on agriculture, drought, ecosystems and water supplies, among other sectors. The report describes the effects of “business as usual” climate scenarios compared to a mitigation-based approach where greenhouse gas emissions are reduced. There are a number of sections…
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Bob Kemerait, a specialist at the University of Georgia in agriculture, recently published an article in Southeast Farm Press on dealing with heat after nearly experiencing a heat stroke while doing corn fungicide research in very hot conditions. In the article he muses on how increased warming might affect agriculture in the Southeast in the…
Posted in: Climate and Ag in the news -
The Southeast Farm Press released a report earlier this month describing a new variety of cattle produced by the University of Florida Range Cattle REC. The Ona White Angus was developed over two decades of cross-breeding and are similar in meat quality to Black Angus but have white hair with black skin. This will make…
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Earlier this month, the blog Carbon Brief published the results of a study asking climatologists which research paper was the most influential in the study of climate. The winner of the study was a 1967 paper by Syukuro Manabe and Richard. T. Wetherald, published in the Journal of Atmospheric Sciences entitled ” Thermal Equilibrium of the atmosphere…
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Bloomberg Businessweek had an interesting article last week on the rapid depletion of the Ogallala Aquifer, a huge underground water source that feeds agricultural irrigation in most of the central Plains. The aquifer is being rapidly depleted by overuse in many places, leading farmers to consider the need to switch from corn to less water…
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The Association of American Geographers (AAG) recently posted an article about the future of California’s drought. They point out that even after multiple dry years, the rains will come back, and if El Nino is as strong as forecast this coming winter, they will return with a vengeance. The writer describes the situation this way:…
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The National Wildlife Foundation recently released a new report on the importance of soil quality in producing sustainable agriculture. The report is entitled Can Soil Save Us? Making the Case for Cover Crops as Extreme Weather Risk Management. In the report it details the impacts healthy soil can have on reducing the effects of extreme weather,…