It is safe to say that New Zealand is largely a farming nation since farming makes up a high percentage of the country's export earnings. The country's climate ranges from regions in the north that are considered "warm subtropical", to "cool and temperate" in the south. These diverse areas allow for numerous kinds of farming which are vital to New Zealand's economy. All over the country there are deer, llama, ostrich, goat, cattle and sheep farms, and though they get no subsidies from the government, they still play a large part in contributing to overseas markets with their beef, wool, dairy products, other meats, hides, venison (from deer), and goat fiber. It is said that there are about 20 times as many sheep as there are people in New Zealand, but since the country has become increasingly more developed in recent years, this figure has dwindled and continues to do so. This is not to say that the development of human civilization in New Zealand is the preeminent concern for threatening the country’s animal farming industries. In fact, climate change is a greater concern, and if global temperatures continue to rise as they have been over the years, New Zealand ’s animal farms could take a hit. Animal farms aren’t the only widespread economy drivers in New Zealand. In addition to animal farms, New Zealand is also rich with tree farms. This way they can harvest trees for lumber without touching the indigenous forests, most of which are protected indefinitely, like the huge rainforest on the western side of the south island. 30 percent of New Zealand is covered in forest, including both natural and "planted production" forests. This is a large and seemingly healthy percentage relative to most other countries in the world. Sin... ... middle of paper ... ...oxide in the air might actually assist the overall growth of some vegetation. Whether the positive aspects of a warmer climate will prevail over the negative aspects remains to be seen, but it will certainly have an impact on agriculture in New Zealand and elsewhere. Humans have never been in this situation before so it will be something that we surely will find out in the future unless something is done to regulate the amount of greenhouse gases that are emitted into the atmosphere. Bibliography Jebson, Mike. “Climate Change and Agriculture and Forestry: Impact on Industries” http://www.maf.govt.nz/mafnet/rural-nz/sustainable-resource-use/climate/impact-on industries.html Jebson, Mike. “Climate Change and Agriculture and Forestry: Issues and Responses” http://www.maf.govt.nz/mafnet/rural-nz/sustainable-resource-use/climate/issues-and-responses.html
High temperature causes the glaciers to melt which raises the sea level on earth which will cause having more frequent flooding and very low-lying land could get submerged completely, It will also affect the food as too much water flowing into the agricultural lands will spoil the
Schwartz, Richard. “Bali Talks Missed Key Issue: Factory Farming’s Horrible Effects.” Wisconsin State Journal 20 Dec 2007: A9.
In Australia the climate is expected to become significantly warmer. Noting that the impacts of climate change will vary from region to
The plants we grow for food needs specific resources to thrive, which includes the night temperature and enough water. A changing climate could create a lot of problems. Climate change could make it too hot and also make it too cold to grow crops in some areas of the world and also climate change can cause drought, which is made by the unavailability of water for irrigation. Climate change is likely to cause stronger storms and more floods, which will damage the crops. . Latin America and Southern Asia is seeing it in lethal storms and floods whereas Europeans are experiencing it in melting glaciers, forest fires and disastrous heat waves (Pearce, 2006). Deforestation is another anthropogenic factor that is causing climate change because of the need for fossil fuel, agricultural lands are being used. Forests are being burnt down by humans on a daily basis. As agricultural lands becomes less in need of growing population, people extend their space by cutting and clearing forest. The land beneath the forest sometimes tends to be unproductive and lacks the natural chemicals for a growing. The plantation will serve as a source of food for a few years after then the land becomes useless because of its infertility, it nutrients get depleted and used up. Deforestation results in numerous problems such as destruction of our natural resources, ecosystem, wildlife,
"The Importance of Livestock." CGIAR News. Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research, 1997. Web. 11 Mar. 2014.
Not only will this be catastrophic for the humans, but animal and plant life will suffer too (“Global Warming” 4, 10, Than 1-4). The oceans will become more polluted and warmer which will cause fish along with coral reefs will die (“Global Warming” 4). The heat will bring animals to extinction; their migration patterns will be altered, change their diet, and force them to live in different locations in order to find a suitable climate (Than 1). Additionally, the warming will hurt the crop production. Crops have a very specific range of temperatures they should grow in order to maximize their yield, and if the earth is going to be above the temperature then crop yield will suffer. Projections for the year 2050 show...
Even though there is a variety of nutritious food all over the world, while the food you have during the winter is less vitamin deficient the food comes at a great ecological cost. With every action comes a consequence; hence, humans do not take the time to acknowledge what they eat and how it affects our environment. Transporting a variety of foods from all over the world hurts our plant due to the carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere, which causes more pollution (Source D). This transportation issue can be resolved by simply purchasing locally grown food because the carbon dioxide being released to the atmosphere causes drastic climate change. McWilliams asserts, “But New Zealand lamb is raised on pastures with a small carbon footprint, whereas most English lamb is produced under intensive factory-like conditions with a big carbon footprint.”(Source C). Not only is carbon a consequence of transportation but also of the factory conditions; hence, the amount of carbon released i...
There is much to be said about how exactly meat is being produced. In the present day, there are hardly any farms out there that still practice the traditional and environmental - friendly way. Animal agriculture is widely used all over the world and greatly contributes to climate change. Meat production leads to global warming because of the combination of carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide. The process of raising animal is the major source to these harmful gases. It is vital to save the world from the worst impacts of climate change by reducing meat consumption. However stopping this meat eating system is extremely difficult, given that we had been consuming meat ever since our ancestors domesticated animals for that purpose. Over the decade Animal agriculture has been getting worse and worse. In 1973 when the Secretary of Agriculture Earl Butz announced ‘’ what we want out of agriculture is plenty of food’’, overproduction was encouraged and lowering the price of meat was carried out; this originally started when there was a massive increase in corn (Wolfson). In order to keep up this mass production of meat, multiple pounds of grains are fed to livestock. Livestock industries depended on corn and soy based food and used over half of the artificial fertilizer used in the United States (McWilliams).
2003) and already more than half of the land suitable for pastures is subject to overgrazing and erosion, posing a risk for food production in the near future. The erosion level of pastures and rangeland exceeds the erosion rate of cropland by roughly six times, meaning, that the land becomes unusable for agricultural use at higher rates when used for meat production rather than vegetarian foods. Moreover, croplands are not exclusively used for human consumption but animal feed accounts for 40 percent of the harvest. Thus, livestock requires land to graze while also depending on land to produce feed. The FAO (FAO, 2012) estimates, that due to the high land-use of conventional agriculture and an increasing demand for omnivorous products such as beef and milk, more than 10 billion hectares of forest are lost to expand pastures and grasslands to feed
In this essay, the effects of climate change on agriculture and how to manage it shall be discussed. Climate change has and will greatly affect agriculture. As time progresses, the effects of climate change will worsen and become detrimental. Mendelsohn and Dinar (2009:1) state,” if future climate scenarios lead to a widespread reduction in food supply, there could be massive problems with hunger and starvation”. Climate change is a change in global climate patterns which is mainly caused by the increased levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide produced by fossil fuels. The writer chose this topic because climate change is a global problem that will pose a threat to people’s lives around the world and must be dealt with sooner than later.
As the turn of the twentieth century approached, the livestock industry became increasingly more powerful than ever before, and meat became much more affordable for working class families (Best). That was, until Francis Moore Lappé’s book, Diet for a Small Planet was published in 1971, and exposed the grave danger that the meat industry set upon the environment and specifically the earth’s land (Best). With a population that grows as rapidly as the human civilization does, it is imperative that changes are made to ensure habitat conservation for years to come, and it seems that a vegetarian diet is the way to help. Livestock farms and land to grow feed for those animals has taken the space of some of earth’s most wonderful resources, using up recreational land, wildlife habitat, and wilderness. The average American diet consists of 270 pounds of meat each year, and that rounds up to approximately 20 acres of land (Vidal). Livestock is said to take up 30% of dry land on earth, and 80% of the agrarian land within the United States. Becoming a vege...
According to National Geographic, Many human societies depend on specific crops for food and clothing. When the climate changes in the area that they are living, they can’t grow crops in this field.Also, scientists believe that tropical diseases will expand to some regions where the temperature is extremely high. (Natural Geographic). This shows how people who depend on growing crops for survival are affected due to the change of climate. According to gto Environmental Protection Agency, climate change affects fisheries. When climate changes, the ranges of many fishes and shellfish decreases. Marine species have temperature ranges at which they can survive. Also, diseases that affect aquatic life will occur when the water is warm. Furthermore, changes in temperature affect the timing of reproduction. For example, in the Northwest warmer temperature changes the lifestyle of salmon. This leads to a decline in salmon population. (EPA) Climate change which is caused by greenhouse gases has an enormous impact on Food
Many effects are occurring due to these temperature rises such as increased droughts which are expected to keep getting longer and more severe in the future. Extreme weather events, in particular storms are becoming stronger due to the upper layers of the ocean becoming warmer, higher air temperatures and higher evaporation rates. In the future is expected that heavier snowstorms and rainstorms will happen more often, and these storms could increase in intensity as the climate becomes warmer.
...o climate change. All of these have caused an impact on the ability to produce crops and grow agriculturally. Climate change has been increasing the number of droughts, floods, health hazards of employees, natural disasters, and sea level elevations. All of these put in danger the crop productivity resulting in famines and food price increments. Climate change affects agriculture in every country differently due to its location. Countries such as Canada and Russia are being affected positively by climate change since it has enabled the country to prosper agriculturally. Other countries cannot handle drastic temperature changes, such as Sudan and Bangladesh, whose agricultural growth has been affected negatively by the climatic changes. Agriculture is fundamental in a country, creating a balance between agriculture and the increasing climatic changes would be ideal.
...ased adaptability among food crop species. While economic issues limit the ability of developing countries to increase agricultural inputs, these regions can find an advantage in the fact their agricultural practices tend to be more flexible. Meanwhile, technologies available to more developed countries are increasing the speed with which new cultivars can be developed, and the ability to understand and improve agricultural management practices. Ultimately, best results to developing agricultural systems which will provide a source of sustainable food for the entire world as climate change progresses; will be a result of a collaboration between scientists and farmers. When practices allowing for greater agrobiodiversity are employed the level of sustainability of our agricultural systems will advance and agriculture can become truly adapted to the new global climate.