Friday, February 1, 2008

Warming May Cause Crop Failures, Food Shortages by 2030

This article mentions the lack of rainfall and how the warming of areas in South Asia and Africa will have harmful effects on crop growth such as corn, wheat, soybean and sugar cane. Most of these crops are used heavily in these countries and could be detrimental to their economy. The predictions say growth may drop up to 30% for corn, which is enormous.

I actually had the opportunity to go to India this past winter break and noticed that the weather was quite warm. It was in the low 70's during the day and high 50's in the evening. My grandmother told me she had never once experienced a winter like this in Delhi. In the past, when I have gone to visit, it was always very cold and you would have to wear layers of clothes just to stay warm. I think this shows the impact of global warming today and not just for the future. Although, the article predicts changes in crop growth for the year 2030, I believe it will happen sooner than that.

It is also sad that a place like Southern Africa is being affected more by global warming in certain aspects than countries like China and the US.

1 comment:

greenbriar said...

It is sad to find Southern Africa is affected by global warming. Because of global warming, the temperature has increased approximately 05-1.0 Fahrenheit and already we are experiencing the effect of this change of temperature. Saleemul Huq from International Institute for Environment and Development in London states “People who live in the least developed countries, the small island developing states, Asia's vast river deltas and most African nations are most vulnerable” (Nature News, 2007)
I also felt the impact of global warming when I visited Taiwan last summer. The weather was unbearable hot and humid. Standing outside under the sun feels like sitting in a sauna, and because of the increased temperature, almost every household implemented AC (the market for AC grew profoundly) which made the weather even more unbearable for the massive release of heat from the ACs. The change of climate for also reduced the number of hurricanes that routinely strike Taiwan every summer. Instead, the few hurricanes that come have become stronger and more deadly. I agree global warming is happening today and not just for the future. We are already seeing more frequent drought, rising sea, melting glacier, etc.