Life Sciences Commons^™

Reducing Emissions From Agriculture To Meet The 2 °C Target, Eva Wollenberg, Meryl Richards, Pete Smith, Petr Havlík, Michael Obersteiner, Francesco N. Tubiello, Martin Herold, Pierre Gerber, Sarah Carter, Andrew Reisinger, Detlef P. Van Vuuren, Amy Dickie, Henry Neufeldt, Björn O. Sander, Reiner Wassmann, Rolf Sommer, James E. Amonette, Alessandra Falcucci, Mario Herrero, Carolyn Opio, Rosa Maria Roman-Cuesta, Elke Stehfest, Henk Westhoek, Ivan Ortiz-Monasterio, Tek Sapkota, Mariana C. Rufino, Philip K. Thornton, Louis Verchot, Paul C. West, Jean François Soussana, Tobias Baedeker

Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources Faculty Publications

More than 100 countries pledged to reduce agricultural greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the 2015 Paris Agreement of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. Yet technical information about how much mitigation is needed in the sector vs. how much is feasible remains poor. We identify a preliminary global target for reducing emissions from agriculture of ~1 GtCO2e yr−1 by 2030 to limit warming in 2100 to 2 °C above pre-industrial levels. Yet plausible agricultural development pathways with mitigation cobenefits deliver only 21–40% of needed mitigation. The target indicates that more transformative technical and policy options will be needed, …

How Will Climate Change Affect Winter Recreation? Recent Research From Northern Minnesota, Lael Gilbert, Jordan W. Smith, Mae Davenport

All Current Publications

This fact sheet reviews recent research examining how winter-based outdoor recreation along the North Shore of Lake Superior will be affected by climate change. The research revealed the majority of outdoor recreationists who visit the region now won’t change their travel plans as temperatures increase and the snow and ice thins out. However, a substantial number of outdoor recreationists indicated they will visit the region more often in the future. This is largely due to longer shoulder seasons, which support these individuals’ preferred outdoor recreational activities. Knowing how outdoor recreationists’ behavioral responses to climate change vary will help community planners …

How Will Climate Change Affect Freshwater Fishing?, Lael Gilbert, Jordan W. Smith

All Current Publications

This fact sheet reviews how climate change can affect freshwater fishing in the United States. Climate change can affect the availability and diversity of target species, the environmental and aesthetic quality of fishing sites, as well as the policies used to manage freshwater fishing.

The Impact Of Climate Change On Inland Recreational Fishing, Lael Gilbert, Jordan W. Smith

All Current Publications

This fact sheet reviews the state of scientific knowledge regarding how climate change can impact inland recreational fishing. Climate change impacts inland recreational fishers in three dominant ways: 1) by affecting fish abundance and diversity; 2) by altering environmental conditions at inland recreational fishing sites; and 3) through indirect management actions and policies put in place to mitigate the undesirable impacts of climate change on fish species and inland recreational fishing settings.

The Effect Of Climate Change On The Economics Of Conservation Tillage: A Study Based On Field Experiments In Indiana, Whitney Hodde

Open Access Theses

This study evaluates the economics of conservation tillage (chisel till and no till) and examines how climate change will likely affect it. We use data from long-term experimental plots in Indiana to estimate how corn and soybean yields respond to weather patterns under alternative tillage practices. Yield functions are coupled with random draws of weather variables to construct distributions describing the probability that conservation tillage will result in higher profits than more intensive tillage, under current and future climatic regimes. Results suggest that, in our study area, projected climate change will make conservation tillage more attractive.

Irrigation Adoption, Groundwater Demand And Policy In The U.S. Corn Belt, 2040-2070, Molly A. Van Dop

Open Access Theses

Climate change across the U.S. Corn Belt will significantly increase precipitation variability and temperatures by midcentury. Corn and soybean producers will seek to find strategies that may help to mitigate the potentially negative effects on yield. The adoption of irrigation technology has increased over the last several decades to improve yields in areas with insufficient rainfall, and is currently being adopted by producers who are choosing to minimize risk due to weather variability. To see if this trend in irrigation adoption has the potential to expand in the wake of climate change, this study uses weather data from four General …

The Impact Of Climate Change In Bangladesh On The Rice Market And Farm Households, Mst Ashrafun Nahar

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Bangladesh is trying to achieve self-sufficiency in domestic rice production but climate change effects on agricultural production makes it challenging to attain the goal. The country is highly vulnerable to the effects of climate change since it is the major cause to rise in sea level, more warm summer, and happening food and cyclone in the country.

This study develops an Aggregate Farm Household Model to analyze the impact of potential land loss and yield reduction from climate change on production, consumption, prices, welfare, and the ability of government to achieve self-sufficiency in rice production. The model is calibrated to …

Climate-Ready Agriculture: A Situation Statement For Western Australia, Robert Anthony Sudmeyer, Anne Bennett, Melanie Strawbridge

Bulletins 4000 -

Projected future changes in the state’s climate will present new challenges for our producers. The Department of Agriculture and Food, Western Australia (DAFWA) continues to work with agricultural industries to lay solid foundations for an agricultural sector that has a range of response options.

This situation statement provides an assessment of how climate-ready the state’s agricultural sectors are and provides guidance for investment priorities for DAFWA for the period 2015–2020.

Long-Term Sandhills Prairie Responses To Precipitation, Temperature, And Cattle Stocking Rate, John A. Guretzky, Cheryl Dunn, Heidi L. Hillhouse

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Understanding of Sandhills prairie, the most expansive sand dune region stabilized by perennial grasses in the Western Hemisphere, is limited by lack of long-term vegetation data. We used a 26-year dataset to evaluate Sandhills prairie responses to yearto- year variation in precipitation, temperature, and cattle stocking rate. Basal cover, a measurement that is constant seasonally and used to detect long-term changes in bunchgrass vegetation, was measured in 38–40 permanent plots positioned along four transects spanning 769 ha from 1979 to 2007. Across this period, total basal cover averaged 2.4 % and was dominated by warm-season grasses (81.1 %). Schizachyrium scoparium …

A Multiple‐Scale Assessment Of Long‐Term Aspen Persistence And Elevational Range Shifts In The Colorado Front Range, Mario Bretfeld, Scott B. Franklin, Robert K. Peet

Aspen Bibliography

Aspen forests and woodlands are some of the most species‐rich forest communities in the northern hemisphere. Changing climate, altered disturbance regimes, land use, and increased herbivore pressure threaten these forests both in Eurasia and North America. In addition, rapid mortality dubbed “Sudden Aspen Decline” is a concern for aspen's long‐term presence in the western United States, especially Colorado and Utah. Yet it is still unclear whether aspen is persistent or declining at the landscape scale. We assessed aspen persistence at different spatial scales in the Colorado Front Range by resampling 89 plots containing aspen from among 305 vegetation plots sampled …

A Systems Approach To Modelling The Effects Of Climate Change On Agroforestry: A Case Study In Western Tanzania, Elaine M. Samuel

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Climate change is anticipated to have significant effects on agricultural production in sub-Saharan Africa as the magnitude of weather events increase in severity. Smallholder farmers in western Tanzania are potentially vulnerable to climate change impact as crops rely on precipitation as the only source of water. It is prudent to evaluate different modes of agricultural adaptations, such as agroforestry, that these farmers can easily adopt to improve their resiliency to the effects of climate change. System dynamics modelling is a cost-effective tool to simulate the long-term behaviour of agroforestry systems under future climate conditions. Water, Nutrient, and Light Capture in …

Irrigated And Rainfed Crops Zea Mays L. (Maize) And Glycine Max (Soybean) Acting As A Source Or Sink For Atmospheric Warming At Mead, Nebraska, Jane A. Okalebo Dr., Kenneth G. Hubbard, Andy Suyker

Conference on Applied Statistics in Agriculture

Land Use and Land Cover Change (LULCC) influence the climate at a global and local scale. Using long term microclimate data (2002-2009, 2011-2012) from the Carbon Sequestration Project (CSP), Mead, NE, this study examines how crop selection and water management can mitigate heat in the atmosphere. Mitigation of global warming is dependent on the management of crop lands, and the amount and timing of rainfall during the growing season. Rainfed crops were found to heat the passing air. The irrigated maize crop was able to mitigate 20 to 62% of the sensible heat (H) compared to the rainfed maize counterpart, …

Examining The Growth And Performance Of The Effect Of Uv-B Radiation On United Arab Emirates Date Palm Tree (Phoenix Dactylifera), Saeedallah Abdulwali Niazwali

Theses

The stratospheric ozone depletion and elevated solar UV-B radiation have a negative effect on living life forms. UV radiation is one of the unsafe components that cause hindrance to both flora and fauna on the earth. This will have important implications for ecosystem processes and food production. The present study has been designed with primary objective of the effect of UV-B radiation on five numbers of most cultivated Emirates varieties (i.e., BARHI, FRDWT, NBTSF, FRDRD and KHD). After 4 and 8 hrs/day UVB treatment the Shoot, Root and total Plant length, Total plant fresh weight, Shoot and Root fresh and …

Climate Change: Impacts And Adaptation For Agriculture In Western Australia, Robert Anthony Sudmeyer, Alexandra Edward, Vic Fazakerley, Leigh Simpkin, Ian Foster

Bulletins 4000 -

This bulletin reviews the latest scientific information relating to climate change and agriculture (broadacre, livestock, horticulture, pastoral industries) in Western Australia.

Invasion During Extreme Weather: Success And Failure In A Temperate Perennial Grassland, James C. Han, Stephen L. Young

West Central Research and Extension Center, North Platte

Invasive and native plant species compete for resources in similar pools, with disturbances often favoring the invader. Yet, increased climate variability may be shifting the competitive edge back toward the natives. We conducted field studies in perennial grasslands to determine the effects of clipping and drought on resource availability (light and moisture) and subsequent establishment of Carduus nutans. We measured light penetration and soil moisture content in C. nutans monoculture, clipped and non clipped grassland with C. nutans, and bare ground control plots. We also tracked phenology of the invader and grasses. Our studies revealed that light was a limiting …

Short-Term Effects Of Warming Treatment And Precipitation Manipulation On The Ecophysiological Responses Of Pinus Densiflora Seedlings, Soon Jin Yun, Saerom Han, Seung Hyun Han, Seongjun Kim, Guanlin Li, Minji Park, Yowhan Son

Turkish Journal of Agriculture and Forestry

The aim of this study was to investigate the short-term effects of warming treatment and precipitation manipulation on the growth, photosynthetic rate, and chlorophyll content of Pinus densiflora seedlings based on a climate change scenario in Korea. Two-year-old P. densiflora seedlings were planted in a nursery in April 2013. The air temperature of warmed plots (W) was set to increase by 3 °C compared to control plots (C) using an infrared heater in May 2013. The three precipitation manipulations consisted of decreased precipitation using transparent panels (-30%; P-), increased precipitation using pumps and drip irrigation (+30%; P+), and a control …

Simulating Long-Term Impacts Of Cover Crops And Climate Change On Crop Production And Environmental Outcomes In The Midwestern United States, Andrea D. Basche, Sotririos V. Archontoulis, Thomas C. Kaspar, Dan B. Jaynes, Timothy B. Parkin, Fernando E. Miguez

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

It is critical to evaluate conservation practices that protect soil and water resources from climate change in the Midwestern United States, a region that produces one-quarter of the world’s soybeans and one-third of the world’s maize. An over-winter cover crop in a maize–soybean rotation offers multiple potential benefits that can reduce the impacts of higher temperatures and more variable rainfall; some of the anticipated changes for the Midwest. In this experiment we used the Agricultural Production Systems sIMulator (APSIM) to understand how winter rye cover crops impact crop production and environmental outcomes, given future climate change. We first tested APSIM …

Short-Term Changes Of Leaf Area Index, Light Transmission, And Gap In A Temperate Mixed Deciduous Forest Ecosystem In Bartın, Turkey, İlyas Bolat, Ömer Kara, Meli̇h Öztürk

Turkish Journal of Agriculture and Forestry

In this study, leaf area index (LAI), light transmission, and gap were estimated by using the hemispherical photograph analysis technique with Hemisfer software version 1.5.3 for a temperate mixed deciduous forest. The height of the overall vegetation in the stand ranged from 15 to 20 m, and the diameters of the trees in the stand at breast height varied between 14 and 28 cm. This study showed that the mean value of LAI increased by 4% in the 5-year period from 2007 to 2012. LAI was significantly (P < 0.05) greater in 2012 than in 2007, whereas the mean percentage of light transmission was significantly lower in 2012 than it was in 2007. In addition, there was a significant (P < 0.01) correlation between LAI and light transmission, and there was also a statistically significant correlation between the gap and light transmission (P < 0.05). According to long-term meteorological data (1982-2012), this study also demonstrated that the mean air temperature rose approximately 1.0 °C between 2007 and 2012. Consequently, this study indicated that LAI varies with respect to time and the increase of LAI leads to a decrease in light transmission. Additionally, the air temperature and precipitation have a significant influence on the LAI.

Sensitivity Of Maize Yield Potential To Regional Climate In The Southwestern U.S., Seung Hee Kim, Boksoon Myoung, David Stack, Jinwon Kim, Menas Kafatos

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

The sensitivity of maize yields to the regional climate in the Southwestern U.S. (SWUS) has been investigated by using the Agricultural Production Systems sIMulator (APSIM) model in conjunction with meteorological forcings [daily maximum and minimum temperature (Tmax and Tmin), precipitation, and radiation] from the North American Regional Reanalysis (NARR) dataset. Sensitivity experiments showed that potential crop production responded nonlinearly to variations in Tmax, Tmin, and downwelling solar radiation at the surface. Mean annual yield potential (Yp) was changed by -3.0 and 1.79 Mg ha-1 for the +1 and -1 standard deviations (σ) of Tmax variation for entire the SWUS. The …