Consequences On Agriculture
As weather pattern changes, the lives of farmers, which depends on traditional subsistence-based agriculture, have become more vulnerable and difficult. At a time when climate change has triggered erratic drought and heavy rains, more population living below the poverty line are exposed to adverse conditions. Thanks to the intervention programs implemented by UK based INGO, Practical Action-Nepal, farmers living in Chitwan have shown that people need to start alternative agriculture arrangement to minimize the effects of climate change
By KESHAB POUDEL
Top Narayan Shrestha, 31, a resident of Kabilash village of Chitwan district, 140 kilometers south west of capital, has seen many ups and downs in recent years in annual food productions particularly in traditional crops like rice, maize and wheat. As there is less rainfall and warmer temperature, the production has become unpredictable.
Having migrated from the hills due to the Maoist insurgency, Shrestha, who lives with 11 family members, bought a barren land with no irrigation facilities. The change in rain pattern increased Shrestha’s worries as his annual production of rice and maize declined and he could hardly produce enough rice and maize from 0.77 hectors of land.
As villagers of Kabilash were in desperate need for alternative to traditional crops, Practical Action Nepal has come as a rescuer.
With an aim to help people increase their resilience towards and enable them to cope with such adversities, Practical Action-Nepal in 2004, with the financial support from Allachy Trust UK, has been implementing a three year pilot project increasing resilience of poor communities to cope with the impacts of climate change in Kabilash since October 2004.
Under the program of Climate Change Adaptation in the village, the project has already repaired a small existing irrigation canal and conducted training in vegetable farming, domestic animal health care and goat raising. People like Top Narayan have seen a new change in their lives by growing vegetables and fruits instead of traditional crop.
“Due to irrigation facilities, I can now grow four crops (maize, paddy, cauliflower and radish) in a year on the same plot. The technical support provided by Practical Action- Nepal became instrumental to me as well as the rest of the villagers,” said Shrestha. “I am also collecting milk from other farmers who started animal farming after the training. I believe that the training and the awareness campaigns made us capable in dealing with situations like droughts and floods through the alternative livelihood options,” said Shrestha with confidence.
People like Shrestha contribute very little to the climate change but they end up facing its worst consequences. According to experiences of Practical Action- Nepal, more people living under the poverty line are less equipped to deal with the changing scenario and, therefore, are exposed to more adverse conditions. “The lack of information and awareness tends to make the whole scenario even worse,” said Upendra Shrestha, fundraising and communication manager, Practical Action-Nepal.
Covering 1,100 populations of six settlements, Practical Action Nepal has been helping people to cope with the impacts of climate changes.
Along with local community, Practical Action-Nepal has already implemented a number of strategies to cope with the climate charge. They include natural resource management for reducing climate change effects, adaptation to changing farming systems and practices, strengthening coping strategies for the communities and enhancing complementary livelihood options and establishing the monitoring systems of climate change at the community/micro level considering the social, economic and natural resource parameters.
Climate Change: A Reality
Although its effect is seen very slowly, climate change is no more an issue of academic debate but a reality now. The research conducted by experts and records accumulated by the organization like Department of Hydrology and Meteorology have already shown that rain precipitation pattern is changing as the number of warmer days is increasing.
Supported by Asian Pacific Network for Global Change and Department of Hydrology and Meteorology, and in collaboration with Bangladesh and Pakistan, research conducted by young Nepalese scientists has revealed that various implications of climate change are occurring in Nepal. From Glacier Lake Outburst Flood to melting snow and decrease in monsoon rain, increased frequencies of water induced disasters; studies have indicated a number of things.
“Though Nepal is one of the least contributors of Greenhouse Gases (GHG) in the atmosphere, it is one of the most vulnerable countries of the world (to the effects of GHG-triggered climate change). The observed rate of increase in annual mean temperature from 1975 to 1995 is 0.04 degree Celsius a year. Although warming is evident in all seasons, warming in winter season is higher than other seasons. Similarly, both the days and nights are becoming warmer with lesser frequencies of cool days and nights,” said Dr. Madan Lal Shrestha, director general of Department of Hydrology and Meteorology. “Although statistically insignificant, the trend related with the number of rainy days shows they are decreasing. But heavy rainfall events are on the rise, thereby, increasing floods and landslides.”
The first impact of the climate change will be seen in agriculture sector. “Impacts of climate changes on actual and potential yields on three major crops: rice, maize and wheat across different agro-ecological belts (mountain, hill and Teri) showed that doubling of CO2 and temperature rise will have positive impacts on major crops in all eco-zones, however, negative effects were realized on maize with rise of temperature exceeding 2 degree Celsius in plain areas. Mountain environment will be more favorable than the tropical flat lands for major crops. Tropical crops are likely to move upwards with increasing global temperature. Present level of marginal surplus will continue to decline and the country may face difficulties to attain agriculture sufficiency,” said Alok Sharma presenting his paper on Impacts on Agriculture presented at the interaction program on role of climate change in the development process. “We need to introduce the crops adaptive to the change.”
Although only a few researches have been done to predict the implications of climate change, it is now a reality in our society. From flood to droughts and unusual rains and warming temperature, all kinds of changes are occurring threatening the life of rural people.
“Farmers living in fragile environments will be the first victims of its adverse impacts such as floods, droughts and diseases. Provided alternatives and other mitigation programs, we can reduce the threat. This is what four year long experiences have shown in Kabilash villages,” said Gehendra Bahadur Gurung, team leader Reducing Vulnerability. “Because of low rain pattern, farmers were unable to plant rice in the villages. Thus, we decided to introduce alternative crops like vegetables and others. In the substitution of rice, we are introducing vegetables and horticulture. Along with providing the alternative crops, we have launched number of awareness campaign about the need to follow the diversification of crops to cope with new situation.”
Despite visible changes occurring in the climate, the government is yet to introduce the policies to fight with the effects of climate change.
“We have been launching other programs to generate awareness about climate change but this is the first one focusing on the adaptation,” said Upendra M. Shrestha. “We are planning to extend these kinds of program in various regions.”
“Temperature change analysis shows the warming by 1.5 degree Celsius to 3 degree Celsius over different season in the mid-21st century. Warming is likely to be higher in the northern part over the Himalayas than in the southern part. Moreover, warming will be the highest in winter season and the minimum in pre-monsoon season. Precipitation change analysis has already shown decrease in precipitation in the eastern Nepal in all the season with decrease up to 40 percent during monsoon,” said Saraju Baidya in his research Climate Trends in Nepal. “This change in precipitation is going to affect cultivation of land.”
Mitigation Measures
Climate change is now going to be a part of day to day life. What the country now requires is mitigation and adaptation programs for the farmers as implemented by Practical Action-Nepal in Chitwan.
“Climate change is going to have major impact on agriculture sector which will ultimately affect our poverty reduction strategy. We have incorporated some programs in interim plan to mitigate the impacts,” said Dr. Jagdish Chandra Pokharel, vice chairman of National Planning Commission.
Despite the change is statistically insignificant, there is already change in the pattern of monsoon rainfall which is detrimental to agriculture.
Water conservation, efficiency of water use, exploitation of renewable energy and development of forecasting and warning are some of the ways for the adaptation. Construction of reservoir reducing the discharge during severe flood and development of forecasting and warning system are some of the key factors for mitigation.
“Water resources are sensitive to climate changes as a hydrological cycle is considered as a fundamental component of climate system. Depletion of water resources and increased frequency of water induced disasters are some of the challenges Nepal is going to have to face as a result of climate change,” said Dr. Keshav P. Sharma in his paper Impacts on Water Resources. “The study indicated that higher sensitivities of high flow to precipitation changes and high sensitivity of low flows to temperature changes. The higher sensitivity of hydrology during low-flow season is of particular concern for the efficiency hydropower and irrigation systems. Similarly, climate as well as water resources play important roles in agriculture.”
Experts point out that improved and efficient technologies are the best approaches for any adaptive measures in water resources and agriculture. Water conservation technologies, integrated water resources management, use of adaptive crop varieties, improved seeds including hybrids, efficient use of fertilizer, irrigation and crop diversification may reduce the likely impacts of climate changes. In addition, there is an urgent need to accelerate the climate change studies in greater depths for innovative technologies, reducing uncertainties related to data gaps and for developing appropriate models to address regional heterogeneities.
For the farmers living in Nepal, the pattern of temperature and rain has already disturbed the regular life cycle affecting the traditional crops. Though the climate change is the reality in the life of many, only a few farmer know about how warming earth is bringing the change and making their life vulnerable.
Shrestha like other villagers of Kabilash village in Chitwan has shown that there is a way out to mitigate the effects of climate change. Although it is just a pilot project, the Practical Action-Nepal’s efforts have shown that there is a way out to adapt with this new reality.
