3.B - Extreme weather events affecting food production Flashcards
how heatwaves affect food production
- periods of abnormally hot weather
- 2003-3000 deaths
- occurred once every 3yrs, now occur every 200 days
- eg Portugal lost 3500 ha of forestry and farmland to fires = increase of imported food
how Droughts affect food production
- crop failure and a decrease of quality and quantity of water
- increase soil erosion, gullying, subsistence, rockfalls and weathering
- meteorological droughts increase
- eg 2003 Ethiopia 20M people needed food aid
how floods affect food production
- climate warms increasing rainfall resulting in flooding
- flooding destroys crops, disrupts distribution, increase soil erosion and damages infrastructure
- eg UK - 35,000ha of high quality arable land flooded, 58% of UK’s productive farmland lies within floodplains
how tropical storms affect food production
- dry regions receive annual rainfall from tropical storms
- climate change intensifies hurricanes, tropical storms and cyclones = more danger
- ocean temps increase = energy of storm increases
- creates pinch points over entire food production system
how farming and carbon cycle affect food production
- food production enhances climate change
- affects of climate change
- farming = a carbon sink
why is food production enhancing climate change
- its is 1/3 of greenhouse gas emissions
- co2 released during deforestation
- methane rebased via intensive crop and livestock production
why does the affects of climate change impact food production?
- the global food system is modified as growing periods are extended and shortened in different regions
- increase in events: droughts, TS, wildfires and river/ costal floods
- the increase = more crops and infrastructure destroyed and disrupts distribution
why is food production affected by farming being a carbon sink?
- soils have limited co2 store
- in developing countries permanent set-a-side land is sequestering large amounts of co2 if left unmanaged or reforested
how water scarcity affects food production
- humans use 1% of world water as it is fresh water, drinkable etc
- of that 1%, 68% is used via agriculture but 60% is lost due to poor irrigation systems
- water is key to growth
countries affected by water scarcity
Australia - water insecurity via El Nino, caused droughts and disrupts river flow in Murray, Darling Basin
Kenya
Australia’s measures to mitigate against water scarcity
- put a cap on amount of water extracted from major rivers
- withdrawal of subsidies and trade in water
Kenya’s mitigation methods against water scarcity
- mulching: laying plant leaves between rows of cultivated crops = reduction in soil erosion and increase in retained water
- drip irrigation: less loss via evapotranspiration
- training farmers: in water harvesting technology
virtual water
water intensive food products
eg - watermelon = high% of water
eg - avocado = high% of water to grow
virtual water affects on food security
- water-scarce countries import virtual water products to relieve pressure on domestic water resources
- major exporters of virtual water: Australia, USA and Brazil
- major importers of virtual water: Japan, South Korea
affects of tectonic hazards on food production
- volcanic ash destroys pasture land
- ash contains fluorine causing fluorosis in livestock post consumption
eg 2000 animals died in New Zealand 1996 - ash = increase sulphur and decreased levels of PH level in soil, crops destroyed
eg Mt Etna 2002 - 85% of vegetables crops lost and 140M euros area lost - secondary impacts = food disruption
