Impacts of Climate Change on Food Production
The impacts of climate change on food production include extreme weather events, declining biodiversity, and risks to food security.
Impacts On Natural & Related Resources Needed for Food Production
Increasing greenhouse gases in the atmosphere is scientifically linked to increasing temperatures, and in turn climate change impacts.
And increasing temperatures are impacting our natural resources essential for food production, including ecosystems, biodiversity, pollination, phenology, and natural pest and disease control.
Extreme weather events such as heat waves, droughts, and torrential downpours are impacting crop yields, food production, and food security.
Globally, heat waves are continuing to increase in frequency, intensity, and duration. Extreme heat has a heavy toll on human health, with the highest mortality rates in older adults with chronic medical conditions.
Climate change is impacting various ecosystem services, including the water cycle, soil microbial processes nutrient cycling, biodiversity, and pollination – all essential for food production.
And climate change along with increasing extreme weather events are projected to impact of crop yields, particularly as temperatures increase above crop specific levels.
In addition, there are various environmental impacts, the conversion of prime land to urban sprawl, supply chain impacts, and economic costs. And 2 or more of our key planetary boundaries are now being exceeded.
Impacts of Climate Change on Food Production - Details in Menu Items
1. Greenhouse Gas Emissions:
Increasing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and increasing atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations are scientifically linked to increasing temperatures, and in turn climate change impacts.
2. Increasing temperatures:
And the result increasing temperatures are impacting our natural resources. These resources are essential for food production, including ecosystems, biodiversity, pollination, phenology, and natural pest and disease control.
3. Increasing extreme weather events:
Further extreme weather events such as heat waves, droughts, and torrential downpours are impacting crop yields, food production, and food security.
4. Increasing human, livestock health impacts and zoonotic diseases:
In addition, heat waves around the world are continuing to increase in frequency, intensity, and duration. Further extreme heat has a heavy toll on human health, with the highest mortality rates in older adults with chronic medical conditions.
5. Increasing ecosystem impacts, biodiversity declines, pests & disease:
And in turn, climate change is impacting various ecosystem services, including the water cycle, soil microbial processes nutrient cycling, biodiversity, and pollination services. These services are all essential for food production. And of concern is the declining biodiversity, depleting groundwater supplies, depleting soils, and increasing deforestation.
Continued - More Impacts of Climate Change - Details in Menu Items
6. Increasing impacts on crop yields:
As a result of these impacts, climate change along with increasing extreme weather events are projected to also impact crop yields, especially as temperatures increase above crop specific levels.
7. Increasing environmental impacts:
Environmental impacts from food production include greenhouse gas emissions, climate change, nutrient discharges, and resource waste.
8. Depletion of non-renewable resources:
And to add to climate change impacts, the depletion of non-renewal raw materials may affect future generations.
9. Disrupting supply chains:
In addition, supply chains can be affected by crop losses and global shortages resulting from climate change, extreme weather events such as heat waves.
10. Concerning urban sprawl:
Globally, urban sprawl continues to consume prime agricultural land, natural areas, and wildlife habitats.
11. Increasing economic impacts & stranded assets:
As a result of the various impacts on our climate systems and natural resources are most likely to result in increasing economic impacts for food production and food security. And economic impacts will result in organizations experiencing stranded assets.
11. Crossing Planetary Boundaries:
Overall, specific reports indicate that specific planetary boundaries have now been crossed or are being threatened by human activity. These boundaries include climate change, loss of biosphere integrity, land-system change, and nitrogen & phosphorus flows to the biosphere and oceans (i.e., altered biogeochemical cycles).
- Last Modified: May 17, 2024