Climate Smart Agricultureby Prayash Pathak (Chalise) | 11-02-2018 03:15 |
---|
Climate change affects agriculture and so does agriculture . IPCC has already suggested that agriculture is one of the most climatic sensitive economic areas of the world. Increase in temperature, erratic rainfall patterns, increasing incidence of insects and pests all have detrimental effects which threatens the global food security systems. It is an inevitable fact that Nepal, an agricultural country, where almost 71% of the economically active population is dependent in agriculture will be highly affected by the changing global climatic patterns . In Nepal where agricultural productivity is already low and the ways of coping with adverse effects are limited, climate change will undoubtedly reduce the production to lower levels. The most vulnerable groups to climate change and variability will be marginalized rural communities with few resources to cope with extreme weather events. This communities will lack both the basic knowledge of climate change and the resilient ways of coping climate change. Adaptation to climate change is the prime need of each and every country. If the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of ending poverty, achieving food security and promoting sustainable agriculture are to be realized, climate change adaptation interventions need to be implemented in earnest. But adaptation to climate change in the agricultural and allied sectors is and will be a troublesome future problem for us. This is mainly because we lack all the basic information, trained manpower and technologies to fight climate change. In my view, the most efficient, effective and economical way to cope with climate change in agriculture is CSA (Climate Smart Agriculture). The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) defines CSA as ?a way forward for food security in a changing climate. CSA aims to improve food security, help communities adapt to climate change and contribute to climate change mitigation by adopting appropriate practices, developing enabling policies and institutions and mobilizing needed finances.? In simpler words CSA is a farming method in which all the farm activities are directed in such a way that all of them will aim to increase the farm resilience to climate change. CSA concept aims to integrate agricultural development with climate responsiveness. It aims to achieve food security and sustainable development goals under the situation of changing climate and increasing demand of food. It increases productivity, reduces GHG emission and enhances resilience. There are many ways of adopting the CSA strstegies in our farm. Some are listed below: 1) Mulching : It simply means covering up the soil with plastic to avoid water loss by evaporation in farm. 2) Efficient use of fertilizers : Timely and limited fertilizer application as per recommended dose. 3) Zero tillage or minimum tillage :No ploughing in land hence no erosion. 4) Use of weather forecasting technology: to combact climatic irregularities. 5) Efficient shed management : for efficient manure collection. 6) Use of bio fertilizers: to replave hazardous chemical fertilizers. 7) Use of animal manure and green manure: 8) Fertigation : Mixing fertilization and irrigation. 9) Use of natural predators instead of pesticide to kill pest 10) and many more. |