The cost of mitigation strategies for agricultural adaptation to global change

Land recovery and the improvement of lands affected by desertification for agricultural use, is achieved when a sustained recovery of agricultural productivity over time is obtained. In the areas affected by desertification and drought, it is common that the ecosystems do not have enough funding for water management and irrigation. This situation leads to an inadequate assessment of the environmental goods and services in arid zones. As a result we have a misuse of these dry lands. Many countries are implementing policies and making investments and efforts to mitigate arid land degradation and desertification through the National Action Programs (NAP). However, for the long term planning of mitigation and adaptation strategies, it is necessary to know the cost of recovery and land improvement in certain areas in order to forecast the budgets. This is the main objective of this paper in order to combat desertification and drought in central northern Chile. We have calculated a recovery cost per hectare by region and for each of the agriculture, livestock and forestry (ALF) promotion agencies. The results indicate that the cost of land reclamation in the northern regions is much higher than in the southern regions of this studied area. The cost is especially high for Region II, where investment per hectare is almost to 3000 US$ per hectare. At the other extreme is the Region VII, in the south of the studied area where the investment required per hectare barely reaches 500 US$. The contribution of the promotion agencies to the total cost also varied among regions and agencies. We discuss the results within a context of recovery cost per hectare depending on the different environmental characteristics and agricultural development of each of the studied regions.     

Effectiveness of the strategies to combat land degradation and drought

This paper focuses on the determination of the most effective set of mitigation and adaptation strategies applied to combat land degradation and drought in a latitudinal gradient. This study was carried out in Chile, in a latitude gradient between 17° 30′S and 36° 33′S. The northern regions are mostly formed by desert and dry land, which can be considered as marginal areas for agriculture. On the other hand, the area formed by the southern regions has an industrialized agriculture where an increased use of technology takes place and where the climate and water availability are optimal for the development of agriculture. The period considered in this study was between 2000 and 2007. We calculated an Investment Effectiveness Index. Afterwards, and in order to assess the effectiveness of the financial support, we performed multiple regressions (P?≤?0.05), where the Index was considered as the independent variable, and the annual difference of the area affected by a high risk of desertification was considered as the dependent variable. Our findings suggest that the effectiveness of the different set of the strategies applied to fight against desertification and drought varies in a latitudinal gradient. Thus, in arid and hyper arid areas the promotion of modern irrigation systems seems to be effective in combating desertification, while in Mediterranean climates the reforestation strategies seem to play an important role. Our results suggest that in areas heavily degraded by overgrazing, the most effective strategies are those oriented to obtain a permanent vegetation cover on degraded soils.     

Numerical model to assess the impact of the strategies to mitigate desertification

Desertification is considered a global environmental problem with political and socioeconomic implications. Desertification, exacerbated by climate change, is the largest environmental problem in Chile affecting almost two third of the national territory. This study takes place in a latitudinal gradient of the north-central Chilean drylands, where desertification is a threat to agriculture, livestock and forestry (ALF). In the context of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) and the implementation of the Chilean National Action Programme (NAP), the country is conducting policies and investing in mitigation strategies to combat land degradation and desertification. The main objective of this paper is the development of an integrative methodological approach using real data of the territorial and socioeconomic indicators. With the proposed methodology we assess the impact of the mitigation and land degradation strategies supported by the ALF promotion agencies in the fight against desertification, projecting different scenarios of change. The data were collected in 2008 in Santiago, Chile. The results of the Principal Component Analysis (PCA) suggest that technical irrigation and the improvement of grasslands and pastures play an important role in the fight against desertification. The results of the model projections are consistent, suggesting that the efforts of the ALF promotion agencies have a positive impact in fighting desertification. Inaction of ALF mitigation strategies would increase desertification. This methodological approach, performed with real data, is a contribution for the development of integrative assessments, for replication and for forthcoming discussions.     

阴山北麓草原生态功能区防风固沙服务受益范围识别

风蚀是北方干旱与半干旱农牧交错带面临的严峻问题。论文以阴山北麓草原生态功能区为例,利用HYSPLIT模型模拟了当地生态系统提供的防风固沙服务流动路径,通过空间插值获得了功能区防风固沙服务的受益范围及其获得效益的相对大小,确定了受益范围内的土地覆被、受益人口及GDP。研究结果显示：1）2010年阴山北麓草原生态功能区的防风固沙服务大部分发生在春季,其流动路径主要往功能区东部和东南部区域延伸;2）防风固沙受益土地面积占全国土地面积的46%,主要位于功能区东部和南部地区;3）功能区受益的人口占当年全国总人口的75%,受益GDP占当年全国GDP总量的67%。未来可以根据受益区获得防风固沙效益的相对大小确定受益区不同区域横向生态付费金额,以补偿当地采取防风固沙措施导致的经济损失和投入,实现地区间公平,促进区域可持续发展。     

气候变化对我国干旱区分布及其范围的潜在影响

为确定气候变化对土地荒漠化影响,以干燥度指数及A1,A2,B1和B2气候变化情景分析了气候变化对我国干旱区分布范围的影响. 模拟结果表明:气候变化将导致我国极端干旱区和湿润区分布范围缩小,干旱区、半干旱区和半湿润区分布范围扩大. 极端干旱区分布范围缩小并被干旱区所代替,半干旱区向半湿润区东、南部方向扩展,湿润区东北部和西部被半干旱和半湿润区所代替. 极端干旱区和湿润区分布范围变化与全国年均气温增量呈负相关性,干旱区、半干旱区和半湿润区分布范围变化与全国年均气温增量呈正相关性. 多元回归分析表明,干旱区和极端干旱区分布范围随全国年降水量增加而减少;半湿润区和湿润区分布范围随全国年降水量增加而增加;除A1情景外,其他气候情景下半干旱区分布范围均随全国年降水量增加而减少;湿润区分布范围随全国年均气温增加而减少,其他气候区范围随全国年均气温升高而增加. 随着气候变化,我国荒漠化范围将增加,干旱胁迫总体上减弱.      

Impact and adaptation opportunities for European agriculture in response to climatic change and variability

Climate change, involving changes in mean climate and climatic variability, is expected to severely affect agriculture and there is a need to assess its impact in order to define the appropriate adaptation strategies to cope with. In this paper, we projected a scenario of European agriculture in a +2°C (above pre-industrial levels) world in order to assess the potential effect of climatic change and variability and to test the effectiveness of different adaptation options. For this purpose, the outputs of HadCM3 General Circulation Model (GCM) were empirically downscaled for current climate (1975–2005) and a future period (2030–2060), to feed a process-based crop simulation model, in order to quantify the impact of a changing climate on agriculture emphasising the impact due to changes in the frequency of extreme events (heat waves and drought). The same climatic dataset was used to compare the effectiveness of different adaptations to a warmer climate strategies including advanced or delayed sowing time, shorter or longer cycle cultivar and irrigation. The results indicated that both changes in mean climate and climate variability affected crop growth resulting in different crop fitting capacity to cope with climate change. This capacity mainly depended on the crop type and the geographical area across Europe. A +2°C scenario had a higher impact on crops cultivated over the Mediterranean basin than on those cultivated in central and northern Europe as a consequence of drier and hotter conditions. In contrast, crops cultivated in Northern Europe generally exhibited higher than current yields, as a consequence of wetter conditions, and temperatures closer to the optimum growing conditions. Simple, no-cost adaptation options such as advancement of sowing dates or the use of longer cycle varieties may be implemented to tackle the expected yield loss in southern Europe as well as to exploit possible advantages in northern regions.     

北方旱农区玉米自然降水生产潜力研究

针对我国北方水资源匮乏日益严重的状况,利用CERES-Maize作物模型模拟分析了北方旱区玉米自然降水生产潜力及其时空分布规律。研究表明,我国北方旱区玉米的水分生产潜力大小排序依次是半湿润区>半干旱区>干旱区,半湿润区的玉米自然降水生产潜力大约为11000kg/hm₂,干旱区大约在5000kg/hm₂,但同时半湿润区潜力的年际间波动性也最显著,干旱区则相对较为稳定。我国北方旱区东部的玉米生产潜力高于西部,但南北方向潜力差异不明显。     

全球变化对我国荒漠化的影响

本文根据当前国内外科学家们对全球变化的研究及＂联合国环境与发展大会＂的决议第１２款,＂荒漠化＂的定义,探讨全球变化对我国土地荒漠化的影响。文中利用我国７００多个气象站点３０年的平均气象资料,采用联合国环境规划署环境监测系统／全球资料数据库方案活动中心以及国际上广泛应用的Ｔｈｏｒｎｔｈｗａｉｔｅ计算ＰＥ与气候分类方法,计算和绘制了当ＣＯ_２倍增、气温升高１．５－４．５℃时我国干旱区、半干旱区及半湿润干旱区（Ａｒｉｄ,ｓｅｍｉ－ａｒｉｄａｎｄｄｒｙｓｕｂ－ｈｕｍｉｄａｒｅａｓ）分布变化的图表,同时利用我国北方１６０个气象台站近４０年连续记录的气象资料,进行滑动平均,计算和绘制了干旱、半干旱区的最近４０年来气温变暖及干湿变化的趋势图,分析了在全球变化下如果工业发展和其结构不变的情况下,未来３０－５０年我国土地荒漠化的发展趋势,为我国荒漠化监测预报和防治提供依据和对策。     

影响北京沙尘源地的气候特征与北京沙尘天气分析

分析并找出了影响北京沙尘暴天气的源地,该源地主要位于北京北部的浑善达克沙地的西北部边缘,内蒙古中西部、河套以西地区的沙漠、荒漠化地区以及干旱、半干旱地区广大的农业开垦区,指出影响北京的沙尘传输路径有3条,即西路、北路和西北路.对源地的气候特征做进一步分析表明,源地的气候特征为温暖干旱、降水不足,这些因素加速了沙尘天气的发生.同时将源地春季降水和北京沙尘天气相比较,发现北路和西北路源地春季降水和北京沙尘暴天气有较好的负相关,西路源地春季降水和北京浮尘天气有较好的负相关.      

1961-2010年中国降水时空变化特征及对地表干湿状况影响

开展气候变化背景下中国降水时空变化特征及对地表干湿状况影响研究,对揭示陆地表层系统对气候变化的动态响应与变化规律以及防灾减灾具有重要意义。基于1961-2010年地面气象观测资料,分析我国降水与地表干湿状况时空格局;在此基础上,采用敏感性与贡献度分析,定量评估降水变化对干湿状况的影响。结果表明：过去50年间我国年降水量呈轻微增加趋势,其中,青藏高原（高原亚寒带、高原温带）、西北（中温带西部、暖温带西部）和南方地区（亚热带、热带）呈增加趋势,东北（寒温带、中温带东部）和华北地区（中温带中东部、暖温带东部）呈减少趋势。就地表干湿状况而言,华北和东北地区以干旱化趋势为主,西北、青藏高原及南方地区主要呈湿润化趋势。地表干湿状况对降水变化响应较为敏感（全国多年平均敏感系数：-1.13）,干湿指数和降水呈负相关。内陆干旱地区降水对干湿状况变化的贡献高于湿润地区,局部地区降水贡献度超过60%。     

Rural vulnerability to environmental change in the irrigated lowlands of Central Asia and options for policy-makers: A review

Climate change, land degradation and drought affect millions of people living in drylands worldwide. With its food security depending almost entirely on irrigated agriculture, Central Asia is one of the arid regions highly vulnerable to water scarcity. Previous research of land and water use in the region has focused on improving water-use efficiency, soil management and identifying technical, institutional and agricultural innovations. However, vulnerability to climate change has rarely been considered, in spite of the imminent risks due to a higher-than-average warming perspective and the predicted melting of glaciers, which will greatly affect the availability of irrigation water. Using the Khorezm region in the irrigated lowlands of northwest Uzbekistan as an example, we identify the local patterns of vulnerability to climate variability and extremes. We look at on-going environmental degradation, water-use inefficiency, and barriers to climate change adaptation and mitigation, and based on an extensive review of research evidence from the region, we present concrete examples of initiatives for building resilience and improving climate risk management. These include improving water use efficiency and changing the cropping patterns that have a high potential to decrease the exposure and sensitivity of rural communities to climate risks. In addition, changes in land use such as the afforestation of degraded croplands, and introducing resource-smart cultivation practices such as conservation agriculture, may strengthen the capacity of farmers and institutions to respond to climate challenges. As these can be out-scaled to similar environments, i.e. the irrigated cotton and wheat growing lowland regions in Central Asia and the Caucasus, these findings may be relevant for regions beyond the immediate geographic area from which it draws its examples.     

Contribution of spatially explicit models to climate change adaptation and mitigation plans for a priority forest habitat

Climate change will impact forest ecosystems, their biodiversity and the livelihoods they sustain. Several adaptation and mitigation strategies to counteract climate change impacts have been proposed for these ecosystems. However, effective implementation of such strategies requires a clear understanding of how climate change will influence the future distribution of forest ecosystems. This study uses maximum entropy modelling (MaxEnt) to predict environmentally suitable areas for cork oak (Quercus suber) woodlands, a socio-economically important forest ecosystem protected by the European Union Habitats Directive. Specifically, we use two climate change scenarios to predict changes in environmental suitability across the entire geographical range of the cork oak and in areas where stands were recently established. Up to 40 % of current environmentally suitable areas for cork oak may be lost by 2070, mainly in northern Africa and southern Iberian Peninsula. Almost 90 % of new cork oak stands are predicted to lose suitability by the end of the century, but future plantations can take advantage of increasing suitability in northern Iberian Peninsula and France. The predicted impacts cross-country borders, showing that a multinational strategy, will be required for cork oak woodland adaptation to climate change. Such a strategy must be regionally adjusted, featuring the protection of refugia sites in southern areas and stimulating sustainable forest management in areas that will keep long-term suitability. Afforestation efforts should also be promoted but must consider environmental suitability and land competition issues.     

Policy and technological constraints to implementation of greenhouse gas mitigation options in agriculture

A recent assessment of agricultural greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions has demonstrated significant potential for mitigation, but suggests that the full mitigation will not be realized due to significant barriers to implementation. In this paper, we explore the constraints and barriers to implementation important for GHG mitigation in agriculture. We also examine how climate and non-climate policy in different regions of the world has affected agricultural GHG emissions in the recent past, and how it may affect emissions and mitigation implementation in the future. We examine the links between mitigation and adaptation and drives for sustainable development and the potential for agricultural GHG mitigation in the future.We describe how some countries have initiated climate and non-climate policies believed to have direct effects or synergistic effects on mitigating GHG emissions from agriculture. Global sharing of innovative technologies for efficient use of land resources and agricultural chemicals, to eliminate poverty and malnutrition, will significantly mitigate GHG emissions from agriculture.Previous studies have shown that as less than 30% of the total biophysical potential for agricultural GHG mitigation might be achieved by 2030, due to price- and non-price-related barriers to implementation. The challenge for successful agricultural GHG mitigation will be to remove these barriers by implementing creative policies. Identifying policies that provide benefits for climate, as well as for aspects of economic, social and environmental sustainability, will be critical for ensuring that effective GHG mitigation options are widely implemented in the future.     

Integrating mitigation and adaptation into climate and development policy: three research questions

The potential for developing synergies between climate change mitigation and adaptation has become a recent focus of both climate research and policy. Presumably the interest in synergies springs from the appeal of creating win–win situations by implementing a single climate policy option. However, institutional complexity, insufficient opportunities and uncertainty surrounding their efficiency and effectiveness present major challenges to the widespread development of synergies. There are also increasing calls for research to define the optimal mix of mitigation and adaptation. These calls are based on the misguided assumption that there is one single optimal mix of adaptation and mitigation options for all possible scenarios of climate and socio-economic change, notwithstanding uncertainty and irrespective of the diversity of values and preferences in society. In the face of current uncertainty, research is needed to provide guidance on how to develop a socially and economically justifiable mix of mitigation, adaptation and development policy, as well as on which elements would be part of such a mix. Moreover, research is needed to establish the conditions under which the process of mainstreaming can be most effective. Rather than actually developing and implementing specific mitigation and adaptation options, the objective of climate policy should be to facilitate such development and implementation as part of sectoral policies. Finally, analysis needs to focus on the optimal use and expected effectiveness of financial instruments, taking into account the mutual effects between these instruments on the one hand, and national and international sectoral investments and official development assistance on the other.     

气象干旱对甘肃省榆中县乡村社会—生态系统的影响

干旱影响研究是干旱及半干旱地区人地关系研究的重要内容,社会—生态系统的视角为西北地区生态脆弱—贫困区的可持续性研究提供了新的思路。选取甘肃省榆中县为研究区,运用标准化降水指数、干旱经济损失估算模型和GIS分析工具,分析干旱对粮食产量、经济发展和农户家庭的影响,归纳干旱对乡村社会—生态系统的影响机制。研究结果表明：（1）1960-2015年,榆中县气象干旱程度较强,且与粮食产量呈显著正相关,尤其对榆中县南、北部山区的粮食产量影响显著;（2）气象干旱造成的经济损失具有频率高和空间分布广的特征,经济损失严重区集中在榆中县南、北部山区;（3）农户家庭受灾面积较大,农作物减产和家庭收入损失明显,气象干旱造成的粮食安全问题严重,且“纯农型”家庭收入损失和粮食安全问题尤为突出;（4）水资源利用环、产量环、收入环—生计环和经济环为干旱影响社会—生态系统运行机制的关键环节。     

甘肃黄土高原气候植被类型初探

甘肃黄土高原位于我国黄土高原的西部,它西起乌鞘岭,东抵子午岭,南至太子山、西秦岭和甘陕省界,北止甘宁省界,包括临夏州、平凉和庆阳两地区、兰州和白银两市的全部,以及定西和天水两地市的绝大部分,面积约11万km²,占甘肃面积的24％左右。陇山以西部分称之为陇西黄土高原,呈丘陵、沟壑地貌,大部分海拔高度在1200—2500m;陇山以东部分叫做陇东黄土高原,塬面较完整,多呈塬、沟地貌,大部分海拔为1200—1800m。 多年以来,在对甘肃黄土高原历史时期的自然植被和治理等问题上,存在着很大的意见分歧。一种观点认为,这里历史时期曾是森林广布、水草丰美的地方,完全是人类不合     

不同岩溶环境条件下岩溶地下水中δ~(13)C_(DIC)特征

岩溶地下水的δ13 CDIC值主要是受土壤碳库和碳酸盐岩碳库的δ13 C所制约。本研究选取两个气候条件完全不同的南方广西桂林、北方山西汾阳为对比研究对象,通过取样测试分析两个地区岩溶地下水的δ13 CDIC值,发现北方汾阳岩溶地下水的δ13 CDIC范围为-7.53‰～-12.25‰,平均为-9.84‰;南方桂林岩溶泉水的δ13 CDIC范围为-9.22‰～-15.99‰,平均为-13.06‰;北方岩溶水比南方偏重3.22‰。结合两个地区所处的气候环境条件分析,北方暖温带干旱半干旱大陆性季风区,C4植被发育,C3/C4比例低,土壤碳库的δ13 C重;南方亚热带湿润季风区C3植被发育,C3/C4比例高,土壤碳库的δ13 C轻。因此气候条件不同引起生态条件的差异而造成南北方地下水δ13 CDIC的不同。这为利用同位素方法研究地下水对气候条件变化的响应提供了理论依据。     

Adaptation and mitigation strategies in agriculture: an analysis of potential synergies

As climate changes due to rising concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, agriculture will be one of the key human activities affected. Projections show that while overall global food production in the coming decades may keep pace with the food requirements of a growing world population, climate change might worsen existing regional disparities because it will reduce crop yields mostly in lands located at lower latitudes where many developing countries are situated. Strategies to enhance local adaptation capacity are therefore needed to minimize climatic impacts and to maintain regional stability of food production. At the same time, agriculture as a sector offers several opportunities to mitigate the portion of global greenhouse gas emissions that are directly dependent upon land use, land-use change, and land-management techniques. This paper reviews issues of agriculture and climate change, with special attention to adaptation and mitigation. Specifically, as adaptation and mitigation strategies in agriculture are implemented to alleviate the potential negative effects of climate change, key synergies need to be identified, as mitigation practices may compete with modifications to local agricultural practices aimed at maintaining production and income. Under future climate and socio-economic pressures, land managers and farmers will be faced with challenges in regard to selecting those mitigation and adaptation strategies that together meet food, fiber and climate policy requirements.     

Climate change, water availability and future cereal production in China

Climate scenarios from a regional climate model are used to drive crop and water simulation models underpinned by the IPCC A2 and B2 socio-economic development pathways to explore water availability for agriculture in China in the 2020s and 2040s. Various measures of water availability are examined at river basin and provincial scale in relation to agricultural and non-agricultural water demand and current and planned expansions to the area under irrigation. The objectives are to understand the influences of different drivers on future water availability to support China's food production. Hydrological simulations produce moderate to large increases in total water availability in response to increases in future precipitation. Total water demand increases nationally and in most basins, but with a decreasing share for agriculture due primarily to competition from industrial, domestic and municipal sectors. Crop simulations exhibit moderate to large increases in irrigation water demand which is found to be highly sensitive to the characteristics of daily precipitation in the climate scenarios. The impacts of climate change on water availability for agriculture are small compared to the role of socio-economic development.The study identifies significant spatial differences in impacts at the river basin and provincial level. In broad terms water availability for agriculture declines in southern China and remains stable in northern China. The combined impacts of climate change and socio-economic development produce decreases in future irrigation areas, especially the area of irrigated paddy rice. Overall, the results suggest that there will be insufficient water for agriculture in China in the coming decades, due primarily to increases in water demand for non-agricultural uses, which will have significant implications for adaptation strategies and policies for agricultural production and water management.     

渭干—库车河三角洲绿洲土壤盐渍化空间分布特征遥感监测研究

渭干-库车河三角洲绿洲是位于塔里木盆地北缘的具有典型干旱特征的绿洲。干旱地区生态环境脆弱,土壤盐渍化严重破坏了国民经济的生产和生态环境的平衡,所以对干旱区盐渍化问题进行系统的研究是非常必要的。本文采用研究区的2001年8月6日遥感图像进行K-L和K-T变换,经过一系列波段结合．我们得到TM3、KL3、KT2波段结合是盐碱地信息提取的最佳波段结合;然后把研究区的等高线矢量图转换成DEM立体图,以及分类结果和DEM之间进行对比,结果表明,立体图的凹区和分类图的盐碱地基本重合在一起,从而我们得到导致该地区的盐渍化问题的自然和人文因素中,地形因素是占在主导地位的。