Agricultural movement tackles challenges of a warming world

Another Colombian farmer, Oscar Perez, plants 320 acres of rice annually, in addition to corn and cotton, on his farm in the hot and humid area of Cordoba near the northern Colombian coast on the Caribbean. Following the advice of Fedearroz and CIAT, Perez has begun not planting fields to avoid losing seed and incurring the expense of fertilizers and labor costs that cannot be recovered.

"When there is no rain, you just don't produce," says Perez, who has operated his farm for the past 15 years. Perez has begun taking advantage of better weather forecasting and also avoids applying fertilizer when heavy rains are predicted so it will not be washed away. In addition, he is using better seed selection to gain improved yields for conditions that are determined to be wet, dry, or moderate that season.

The variety of methods that are being called "climate-smart" vary greatly and cut across all areas of farming. For example, climate-smart-inspired agricultural changes in rice farming in Vietnam include a greater focus on more effectively alternating the flooding and drying of rice paddies. The rice farmers do not rely on traditional transplanting of rice seedlings into flooded fields as a means of weed control. That reduces the release of the powerful greenhouse gas methane, which typically emanates from flooded fields.

Rather, the method now being used in Vietnam relies more on chemicals to control weeds. The use of chemicals can contaminate the water, but the tradeoff means the rice crop is spared from the debilitating effects of drought, while farmers achieve intensified production and increased yields. As a result, farmers in Vietnam have reduced the amount of seed used per field by 70 percent, reduced water use by 33 percent, and cut the application of nitrogen fertilizer by 25 percent, according to CGIAR research. In addition to detailed monitoring of water levels in the soil, the farmers use high-yield seeds bred with traits that can withstand the occasional soaking of saltwater caused by rising seas.

Chris Hegadorn, director of global food security at the U.S. State Department, said that the U.S. decision to join the Alliance for Climate-Smart Agriculture represents an important step in "integrating climate change policies into all areas of our work." He added that climate-smart agriculture "will help protect lives and livelihoods, especially for the tens of millions of vulnerable small-holder farmers around the world."

But some experts involved with global development say that, in itself, climate-smart agriculture will be insufficient in a world of rising temperatures and soaring populations, especially in places like Africa. Interventions at the farm level can only go so far if water is unavailable or soils degrade. It's necessary, experts say, to look beyond the farm and manage entire landscapes that support people, food production, and nature.

Seth Shames, director of policy at the non-profit group,EcoAgriculture, says that preserving the ecosystems of an area - including forests and wetlands - will become an essential part of supporting agriculture. But he warns that if serious efforts aren't made to slow climate change, even the most innovative agricultural techniques can only accomplish so much.

"If projections are correct, the destruction that will occur in agriculture will be so severe that those kinds of solutions will be swamped by reality and God knows what will happen," says Shames. "In 20 to 25 years we will get to a point in some places that either it will be too hot, too dry, too wet, or too cold for the crops you are planting and you will have to put something else in its place, which will be incredibly disruptive at best."