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Sigmetnow

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #800 on: March 22, 2016, 04:14:38 PM »
Brown tide on Florida coast?  Massive fish kill:

"Past studies have shown a massive underwater algae bloom that is killing sea grass and soaking up oxygen, which gives fish nothing to breathe."

Quote
Thousands of dead fish are turning up in the Indian River Lagoon over the past several days, leaving carcasses along the shoreline and a smell that will take your breath away.

The images are disturbing: Countless dead fish line the banks of the Banana River near Port Canaveral.

"The lagoon is crying for help, and we're the cause," said Dustin Rapp, who runs Time and Tide Tours and conducts eco-tours of the Indian River Lagoon.
http://www.mynews13.com/content/news/cfnews13/news/article.html/content/news/articles/cfn/2016/3/21/brevard_county_fish_.html
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AbruptSLR

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #801 on: March 23, 2016, 12:09:43 AM »
The two linked articles discuss how climate change will affect freshwater supplies, which in turn affects jobs and water quality.


http://www.reuters.com/article/us-environment-water-economy-idUSKCN0WO018

Extract: "An estimated three out of four jobs globally are dependent on water, meaning that shortages and lack of access are likely to limit economic growth in the coming decades, the United Nations said on Tuesday.
About 1.5 billion people - half the world's workers - are employed in industries heavily dependent on water, most of them in farming, fisheries and forestry, the U.N. World Water Development Report 2016 said.
"There is a direct effect on jobs worldwide if there are disruptions in water supply through natural causes, such as droughts, or if water doesn't get to communities because of infrastructure problems," said Richard Connor, the report's editor-in-chief.""


http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/climate-change-is-contaminating-water-sources-with-fecal-matter_us_56f024f7e4b09bf44a9deb98

Extract: "The global water crisis has become more dire now that climate change is threatening the drinkability of water, even that which comes from reliable sources.
New testing procedures have found that 1.8 billion people may be imbibing water contaminated by E.coli, which means there are traces of fecal matter in it, according to UNICEF. And this includes sources that have undergone improvements.
Climate change is believed to be one of the main contributors to such pollution due to its link to an increase in flooding. More flooding means more damage to water and sewage facilities, which spreads feces into water sources. The issue is of particular concern in areas where open defecation is prevalent."
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charles_oil

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #802 on: March 23, 2016, 11:00:52 PM »
The Met office in UK uses records back to 1659 !   Their latest on extended growing seasons shows that 6 of the 10 longest growing seasons in 355 years were in the last 30 years.
Link:
http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/news/releases/2016/growing-season

AbruptSLR

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #803 on: March 25, 2016, 04:20:19 PM »
The linked article indicates that by 2030 major crop failure will occur due to climate change, including rice production (see extract).  Unfortunately, when rice crops fail to produce food, then still produce methane, so with a combination of growing population with more spending capital, and more crop loss due to climate change; people will plant more rice fields which will accelerate methane emissions for a positive feedback:

http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/global-warming-hits-rice-bowls

Extract: "A recent study by the Nanyang Technological University's S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS) noted that variations in food production around the world due to climate shocks are likely to become more intense and frequent.
The report said that by 2030, for example, rice production in north-eastern Thailand could be reduced by up to 17.8 per cent due to flooding and storm surges."
“It is not the strongest or the most intelligent who will survive but those who can best manage change.”
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #804 on: March 29, 2016, 02:48:51 AM »
'Worst Bleaching Ever' Observed on the Great Barrier Reef
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Known for its vast size, rich marine ecosystem, and brilliant coloration, the Great Barrier Reef is probably the most famous coral reef in the world. As of today, a vast swath of it has turned a sickly skeletal white. It’s fallen victim to coral bleaching, a phenomenon that results when the ocean waters that reefs call home get too hot—weakening or killing off the coral altogether.

A new survey conducted by Professor Terry Hughes of James Cook University, who used charter planes and helicopters to conduct an aerial survey of the reef, found that as much as 95 percent of the northern section of the Reef—an area spanning 100,000 square kilometers (38,600 square miles)—was “severely” bleached.
http://motherboard.vice.com/read/worst-bleaching-ever-observed-on-the-great-barrier-reef-coral
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Bruce Steele

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #805 on: March 31, 2016, 09:36:33 AM »
For those who don't know me I have been a commercial fisherman for 40 years.
This is an excerpt from a letter I  wrote to a friend on the east coast a couple days ago. I will provide a link to a Calif. fish and Wildlife press release i received today. It is focusing on Northern Calif. And some of the issues are the same but the red sea urchin disease is a Southern Calif. problem not a Northern Calif one.  Yes fishermen are eyes on the grounds. Red Sea Urchins for example are currently suffering a large mortality event unlike anything I have ever seen in 40 years diving. The purple urchins had a large mortality event like most El Nino events trigger but Reds typically do not die-off like purples in an El Nino... So Domoic acid for dungeness , rock crab, sardine, anchovy , black spot die-off in Red Urchins, mass mortality for Purple Urchin, sea star die-off,and very bad kelp conditions.
There is probably an increase in Abalone withering foot syndrome ( although I am not there to verify ). Feels like Dante's inferno.
So here in Calif. the top two fisheries were a total catastrophe this year( squid and dungeness)
lobster #3 was not good, urchins are having disease issues at #4 , salmon was a bust, and there just aren't any winners.


Bruce Steele

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #806 on: March 31, 2016, 09:42:00 AM »
Here is the report on Northern Calif. kelp conditions and associated fauna troubles.

https://cdfwmarine.wordpress.com/2016/03/30/perfect-storm-decimates-kelp/


« Last Edit: March 31, 2016, 10:16:38 AM by Bruce Steele »

ritter

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #807 on: April 01, 2016, 07:41:31 PM »
For those who don't know me I have been a commercial fisherman for 40 years.

Bruce,

I always appreciate your posts. I've been going to the California coast my whole life (all 43 years). I can't really even comprehend the impact our collective activities have had on those who make a living from those waters. I'm always heartbroken reading about our trashing of the ocean. It's about as close to church as I've ever gotten--a mystery of my world I'll never truly understand, mostly inaccessible and with a power beyond my imagination. It is the primordial ooze from which we all slithered. To think we're so far into the process of destroying this world beyond our terrestrial home brings me to tears. Keep up the good fight and best of luck to you and your colleagues.

Bruce Steele

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #808 on: April 01, 2016, 08:55:42 PM »
Ritter, Mystery is an important element of wisdom and the acknowledgement of our place in this beautiful world. There is in the ocean so much we will never count, quantify, or understand. To be a fisherman is to throw ones fate to the winds in so many ways. 
 I have looked closely into the eyes a fish swimming beside me. Their eyes and our eyes are so similar that some acceptance of our common ancestors for me anyway obviates all Darwin's hard work. From the ocean we did spring forth.
I have also followed a giant octopus just to watch ,for a few minutes of precious bottom time ,how the octopus moved and changed color. And after the octopus got tired of my pursuit he started flashing red and changed the color his eyes. Even anger or emotion are not solely human traits. ( it might have been female )
 The ocean is still a grand and beautiful place. Watching how the heat of an El Nino runs roughshod through the kelp forest is scary and sad but to some degree it is natural and maybe even necessary  to an environment that evolved under repeated El Nino events of the distant past. But there are limits to what nature sends and the extra heat we can show is our contribution. In combination there are of course losers and some of them have lived for millions of years without our meddling and willful ignorance. We cannot look into the eyes of every creature that we have collectively cast asunder. But if it doesn't break your heart I don't understand how you can call yourself a sentient being. 
 So yes I will battle on but my heart breaks. I still don't understand my fellow human kin and I wish they had been able to see my world. I hope mostly for the sake of your children I might make a difference. Teach them the value of mystery and the world we will never really know or understand completely. It's value is beyond ours.  
   

ivica

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #809 on: April 01, 2016, 10:13:02 PM »
Thanks b'wanas, your posts show values of life and what is worth of fighting for ... the life ... of all, not just of a few. :respect:

sidd

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #810 on: April 02, 2016, 05:29:44 AM »
" ... my heart breaks."

And mine. I see where Paul Kingsnorth at the Dark Mountain project is coming from. But I perserve none the less, as someone said in, I think, the Dutch-Spanish wars, "It is not necessary to hope in order to persevere."

Sigmetnow

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #811 on: April 06, 2016, 06:52:10 PM »
Scientists sound West Coast global warming alarm
Quote
Climate change is exacting a toll on west coast waters, and Oregon, California, Washington and British Columbia can’t afford to wait for the federal government to take action, according to a coalition of scientists.

Hypoxia and acidification are making the coastal waters inhospitable to sea life, according to the researchers.
...
Among the panel’s recommendations:
  • Develop new benchmarks for near-shore water quality as existing criteria were not developed to protect marine organisms from acidification;
  • Improve methods of removing carbon dioxide from seawater through the use of kelp beds, eel grass and other plants;
  • Enhance coastal ecosystems’ ability to adapt to changing ocean chemistry through better resource management, including marine reserves, adaptive breeding techniques for shellfish, and other methods.
http://registerguard.com/rg/news/local/34231258-75/scientists-sound-west-coast-global-warming-alarm.html.csp
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #812 on: April 07, 2016, 02:18:32 AM »
As the world gets hotter, personal activity decreases.  And consumption of processed foods, which are less perishable than fresh foods, may increase.  An interactive look at the data.

The World Is Getting Fatter and No One Knows How to Stop It
Quote
Economic forces are conspiring to cause the great global weight gain. Countries grow wealthier and increase consumption. People move from rural areas to cities, where they have ready access to inexpensive, processed foods. Machines do work that humans once did, decreasing the amount of energy people use. And global trade means the reach of junk food has never been greater. Up against these trends, no country has figured out how to reverse the rise of obesity.
...
The number of people who are overweight or obese is going up pretty much everywhere. The world has made progress against health threats from smoking and malnutrition to malaria and waterborne illnesses. No country has yet reversed the obesity epidemic. “Not only is obesity increasing, but no national success stories have been reported in the past 33 years,” researchers in the Lancet wrote in a 2014 report funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

A United Nations plan published in 2013 calls for halting the rise in diabetes and obesity by 2025. Though the pace of increase has slowed in some places, Lancet researchers recently called the chances of the world meeting that target “virtually zero.”
http://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2016-global-obesity/
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #813 on: April 07, 2016, 02:49:34 AM »
Farmland Could Play Key Role in Tackling Climate Change
Quote
About three times the carbon currently in the atmosphere is stored in the Earth’s soil — up to 2.4 trillion metric tons, or roughly 240 times the amount of carbon dioxide emitted by burning fossil fuels annually.

Much of that is locked up in land used for agriculture. Cropland soil stores atmospheric carbon in organic matter such as manure, roots, fallen leaves and and other pieces of decomposing plants. It doesn’t remain there permanently. It takes decades for the organic matter in the soil to decompose, and the carbon stored within is eventually emitted back into the atmosphere as gas. Soil is responsible for 37 percent of global agricultural greenhouse gas emissions, according to the paper.

Estimates vary for how much carbon dioxide could be stored if soil were managed with the climate in mind. Methods of controlling the amount of carbon stored depend on climate and soil type. In addition to slowing the decomposition rate of organic matter in the soil, some methods include adding compost or biochar to fields, vegetating fallow fields and more effective use of irrigation, erosion control and fertilizer.

The study says that if all the Earth’s farmers were to manage their fields so the soil stored more carbon, the impacts of the greenhouse gases emitted from burning fossil fuels annually could be cut by between half and 80 percent.

More realistically, the emissions reductions would likely be much lower, possibly between 10 and 20 percent of total annual human emissions.
http://www.climatecentral.org/news/farmland-could-play-role-in-tackling-climate-change-20219
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Bruce Steele

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #814 on: April 09, 2016, 07:57:14 AM »
Sigmetnow posted a link to this report a couple days ago. Press release was on the fourth and I got a call today for some comments. Always tricky trying to break a difficult subject down for press consumption
Anyone who has done a phone interview would also like to help edit but that is rarely an option.
I really think having a fisherman's voice is important in this issue.

   http://www.presstelegram.com/environment-and-nature/20160408/west-coast-scientists-urge-immediate-action-to-combat-ocean-acidification

Sigmetnow

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #815 on: April 11, 2016, 12:34:05 AM »
Cost is one thing ("junk food" is often cheaper and thus more affordable to feed a poor family than an equal amount of unprocessed food -- in the U.S., anyway).  But the incredible amounts of food in some of these photos -- certainly fits with the global rise in obesity.  Why do we overeat?  And waste food? 

Is the world spending too much money on food?
Quote
Writer Faith D’Aluision and her husband Peter Menzel should win the award for social experiment of the century! Whether it was their intention or not, they are showing the world just how much food our society wastes through their recent photographic project, “Hungry Planet: What the World Eats,” which came to fruition in 2006.

The couple took photos of numerous families from different countries around the globe after they went shopping for their average week’s worth of groceries. It’s no secret that every culture is different, but the amount of food waste that some are contributing is shocking!
http://www.warpedspeed.com/how-much-the-world-spends-on-food-that-doesnt-get-eaten/
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #816 on: April 28, 2016, 08:36:35 PM »
It May Soon Be Too Late to Save the Seas
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What happens if marine life in the oceans can't pull in enough oxygen from the oceans to live? We may be about to find out.

A startling new study led by the National Center for Atmospheric Research (the federal research arm of the National Science Foundation) published Wednesday found a disturbing trend – a warming planet could overwhelm natural variability and start to significantly affect oxygen levels in the oceans in just 10-15 years.

The study confirmed what scientists have long observed - that climate change is causing a drop in the amount of oxygen dissolved in oceans in some parts of the world. But the study's central conclusion is what is so alarming - the effects of this drop in the amount of oxygen all marine life require will start to become evident in just 15 years or so. At some point, the drop in the ocean's oxygen levels will leave marine life struggling to breathe.
http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2016-04-27/it-may-soon-be-too-late-to-save-the-seas
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #817 on: May 01, 2016, 07:12:00 PM »
Why Indonesia keeps blowing up boats on TV
Quote
Indonesia, responsible for guarding some of the world’s most precious fishing waters, has a message to seafaring poachers.

Sail into our waters illegally if you dare. But if we catch you, we will toss you in prison and detonate your boat in a massive fireball. And we will destroy it on television so a grateful nation can cheer us on.

Indonesia’s president, Joko Widodo, has a phrase for this aggressive anti-poaching strategy: “shock therapy.” His cabinet contends that, before the crackdown began, nearly 5,500 foreign fishing boats plied Indonesia’s waters each day — and only one in 10 was operating legally.

That was before officials blew up 200 boats seized from poachers, many of them caught hunting tuna. They say pirates are now getting the message. The campaign, according to the government, has driven down illegal fishing by 90 percent.
...
Indonesia may seem far away to Westerners, but its war on poaching is partly driven by a voracious US appetite for seafood.

By virtue of its long coastlines, Indonesia has been forced onto the front lines of a global struggle against overfishing — an ecological catastrophe created in large part by demand from wealthier nations.

The top importer of Indonesian seafood is the United States, followed by Japan and the European Union. Affluent nations are devouring seafood faster than fish can breed. And fishermen from poorer nations, poachers and legit boatmen alike, compete fiercely to suck the seas dry.

The planet’s fish are disappearing at a terrifying rate. Marine life populations, according to the World Wildlife Fund, have been cut in half in the last four decades.
http://www.globalpost.com/article/6766111/2016/04/28/why-indonesia-keeps-blowing-boats-tv
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #818 on: May 03, 2016, 02:41:09 PM »
Despite recent studies on the extensive bleaching of the Great Coral Reef, the Queensland Courier-Mail emphasises the jobs Adani’s Carmichael coal mine might (or might not) create.

Bleaching whitewash
Quote
My second question to Melloy and Heywood, then, is this. In another editorial, on 3 April, the Courier-Mail ran hard in its support of Adani’s Carmichael coal mine, which alone could account for a full 4% of global emissions by mid-century. Does the paper see any incompatibility between its support for the mine and its purported desire to save the Great Barrier Reef?

That editorial begins: “In the real world you need jobs.” While Adani has claimed in its press releases that the mine will employ up to 10,000 people, its own expert, Jerome Fahrer, has conceded that the real figure is closer to 1500. This leads to a third question: either way, how do these figures compare to the 70,000 jobs at stake on the Great Barrier Reef (leaving aside the reputations of Queensland and Australia)?
https://www.themonthly.com.au/blog/andrew-stafford/2016/03/2016/1462237762/bleaching-whitewash
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Michael Hauber

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #819 on: May 04, 2016, 12:33:25 AM »
Jeff Masters reports on one of the most convincing scenarios for a genuine climate change related catastrophe I have come across:

Food System Shock:  Climate Change's Greatest Threat to Civilization

As climate change shifts our agricultural capability we not only need to consider that we may face say a 20% decline in the productivity of our global food supply, we also need to consider the increased chance of extremes beyond what the current food supply is designed to cope with.

Anyone for converting a large area of wilderness somewhere to extra farmland just in case we have a really bad year?
Climate change:  Prepare for the worst, hope for the best, expect the middle.

jai mitchell

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #820 on: May 04, 2016, 05:07:22 PM »
40-years hence:

Wheat is currently 20% of globally averaged human caloric daily intake

Quote
Overall they found a 15 percent reduction in yields when temperatures rose on average just 2 degrees Celsius and a 40 percent decline when average temperatures went up just 4 degrees. Sadly, they also found that more modern plants were more vulnerable than older strains

Read more at: http://phys.org/news/2015-05-evidence-global-wheat-production.html#jCp

Last night I dreamed I was talking with a wooden figurehead, a woman from the prow of an ancient sailing vessel, she was wrapped in seaweed and a chain, she was cool and wet and green with moss.  She was the world's oceans and I was advocating for humanity on the land 40 years from now.  I said,

Quote
We are getting really hungry now.  Is there any chance that you could feed us?

to which she simply shook her head.

http://phys.org/news/2016-04-widespread-loss-ocean-oxygen-2030s.html



Quote
The research team found that deoxygenation caused by climate change could already be detected in the southern Indian Ocean and parts of the eastern tropical Pacific and Atlantic basins. They also determined that more widespread detection of deoxygenation caused by climate change would be possible between 2030 and 2040.
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AbruptSLR

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #821 on: May 10, 2016, 10:42:41 PM »
The linked study (& associated image) indicates that bees are continuing to die-off in great numbers:

https://beeinformed.org/results/colony-loss-2015-2016-preliminary-results/

See also:
http://www.theverge.com/2016/5/10/11652246/honeybee-loss-44-percent-colonies-us-2015-2016

Extract: "Bees are continuing to die off in great numbers across the US, with rates increasing over the past year to a loss of 44.1 percent of all honeybee colonies…"
“It is not the strongest or the most intelligent who will survive but those who can best manage change.”
― Leon C. Megginson

Sigmetnow

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #822 on: May 12, 2016, 07:49:06 PM »
Drought Cuts South Africa 2015 Wheat Crop 18% to Four-Year Low
Quote
South Africa’s wheat production fell to a four-year low in 2015 as the lowest rainfall in more than a century damaged the harvest.

While South Africa is the sub-Saharan region’s biggest producer of the wheat after Ethiopia, it’s still a net importer of the grain, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture data. The driest conditions since records started in 1904 have damaged crops and livestock and sent local wheat prices to the highest on record in January, driving up food prices. The government has declared disaster areas in several provinces of the country, the continent’s biggest corn and sugar grower.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-05-12/drought-cuts-south-africa-2015-wheat-crop-18-to-four-year-low
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #823 on: May 18, 2016, 07:22:09 PM »
How Soil Microbes Fight Climate Change
Quote
Around the globe, 2016 has been a dusty year. Just this month, massive dust storms enveloped Guazhou County in China, engulfing five-story buildings. Dust storms in Kuwait suspended oil exports, while another  storm engulfed the Texas Panhandle. In January, red clouds of dust swept across Free State, South Africa, while scientists warned that the erosion of nutrient-rich topsoil threatened food security.

But the loss of soil also presents a less obvious challenge: it robs us of a key ally in fighting climate change. That ally is soil microbes.

Global soils already hold three times as much carbon as exists in the atmosphere, and there’s room for much more. According to a recent study in Nature, enhanced carbon storage in the world’s farmland soils could reduce greenhouse gas concentrations by between 50 and 80 percent.
http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/guest-blog/how-soil-microbes-fight-climate-change/
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #824 on: May 19, 2016, 12:55:59 PM »
"I will probably never see the Great Barrier Reef in the state that it was in six months ago ever again."

New Photos Show The Rapid Pace Of Great Barrier Reef Bleaching
http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2016/05/14/477963623/new-photos-show-the-rapid-pace-of-great-barrier-reef-bleaching
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Snek

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #825 on: May 20, 2016, 07:42:26 AM »
Headline: Chief agrometeorologist of Ukraine: "In 20 years south of country can turn into a desert"
Fragment: "with the temperature rise in southern regions that we can see in last 20 years it is impossible to say that tomorrow there will be a desert. But with current trend it can happen after 20-30 years if there is no actions to fight this phenomenon.

Full article (russian language)
http://economics.unian.net/agro/1165246-glavnyiy-agrometeorolog-ukrainyi-cherez-20-let-yug-stranyi-mojet-prevratitsya-v-pustyinyu.html

Sigmetnow

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #826 on: May 22, 2016, 07:30:42 PM »
Across Africa, the worst food crisis since 1985 looms for 50 million
A second year without rain threatens to bring catastrophe for some of the poorest people in the world. Donor countries, in the grip of wars and refugee crises, have been slow to pledge funds. But by the time they do, it could be too late
Quote
Last year’s drought, followed by erratic rains, hit the village of Nkhotakota hard. But this year the rains never came and, for a second year running, the family grain store is empty. If they manage their savings carefully and eat just one small meal a day, they may just have enough food for two more months.
...
Malawi, Mozambique, Lesotho, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Madagascar, Angola and Swaziland have already declared national emergencies or disasters, as have seven of South Africa’s nine provinces. Other countries, including Botswana and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, have also been badly hit. President Robert Mugabe has appealed for $1.5bn to buy food for Zimbabwe and Malawi is expected to declare that more than 8 million people, or half the country, will need food aid by November.

More than 31 million people in the region are said by the UN to need food now, but this number is expected to rise to at least 49 million across almost all of southern Africa by Christmas. With 12 million more hungry people in Ethiopia, 7 million in Yemen, 6 million in Southern Sudan and more in the Central African Republic and Chad, a continent-scale food crisis is unfolding.

“Food security across southern Africa will start deteriorating by July, reaching its peak between December 2016 and April 2017,” says the UN’s office for humanitarian affairs. The regional cereal deficit already stands at 7.9m tonnes and continues to put upward pressure on market prices, which are already showing unprecedented increases, diminishing purchasing power and thereby reducing food access. As food insecurity tightens and water scarcity increases due to the drought, there are early signs of acute malnutrition in Madagascar, Malawi, Mozambique and Zimbabawe.
http://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2016/may/22/africa-worst-famine-since-1985-looms-for-50-million
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #827 on: June 02, 2016, 03:59:56 AM »
Extreme weather is increasing the levels of toxins in our food, according to a new report by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).
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...as nature forces plants to adapt to drought or flood conditions, they turn on - or accumulate - different toxins that make them unpalatable or even poisonous to people and livestock.
http://www.dw.com/en/study-climate-change-makes-our-food-more-poisonous/a-19297308
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #828 on: June 08, 2016, 09:36:14 PM »
Climate Change Is Making Calendars Run Amok
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In the Pamir Mountains of Central Asia, time has stopped working.

Communities in the region traditionally kept time by pegging it to environmental markers, such as melting snow or the first appearance of a migratory bird. But these “ecological calendars” have ceased to function properly due to the effects of climate change.

An array of environmental shifts in the region, such as unusual weather events, untimely glacial melts, lake bursts, and changes in animal and bird migration patterns, have thrown the calendars so far off kilter that most villagers no longer use them, and they struggle to reliably predict cues for planning agricultural and cultural activities.
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2016/06/towns-changing-clocks-time-climate-change-pamir-science/
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #829 on: June 10, 2016, 12:52:16 AM »
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #830 on: June 19, 2016, 12:59:19 PM »
The enormous threat to America’s last grasslands
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In the mid-2000s, a perfect storm of conditions led to a decade of grassland destruction in North Dakota’s share of the prairie pothole region, a vast expanse of grassland and wetlands that stretches from eastern Alberta to northern Iowa. Corn and soybean prices were high, climate change had extended the growing season and genetically modified crops could now survive in the northern plains. And then the oil boom hit.

Between 2005 and 2015, more than 160,000 acres of Stutsman County mixed grass prairie — an ecosystem that can support more than 100 plant species per square mile — was converted into single-crop farmland. In just six years, North Dakota lost half of its acreage that was protected under the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) as biodiverse grasslands fell to the plow.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/energy-environment/wp/2016/06/16/the-enormous-but-forgotten-threat-to-americas-last-grasslands/
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #831 on: June 22, 2016, 01:03:11 PM »
GMO:  when you don't have time to develop new strains "naturally."

New crop varieties 'can't keep up with global warming'
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Crops yields around the world could fall within a decade unless action is taken to speed up the introduction of new varieties.

A study says temperatures are rising faster than the development of crop varieties that can cope with a warmer world.

In Africa, researchers found that it can take 10-30 years before farmers can grow a new breed of maize.

By the time these new crops are planted, they face a warmer environment than they were developed in.
http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-36579125
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TerryM

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #832 on: June 22, 2016, 04:27:52 PM »
GMO:  when you don't have time to develop new strains "naturally."

New crop varieties 'can't keep up with global warming'


While this subject is far removed from any expertise that I may have, I can't help but wonder if this isn't an example of propaganda favoring GM crops?


In most instances that I can imagine, there would be varieties of every food grown that are already acclimatized to higher temperatures. In those areas that do exceed the temperature limits for one particular crop there are certainly other species of foods that can replace it.


Wheat, corn, beets, beans, potatoes and tomatoes grow from Mexico through Canada. Citrus, avocados and bananas favor the warmer climes while apples and sugar maple favor cold winters.
I'd imagine that if we wanted to grow Canadian bananas or Florida maple cider on a commercial basis, that genetic modification might be required. Otherwise simply changing to seeds presently used some distance to the south should be sufficient.


Flooding, drought and especially the inability of farmers to predict what the next season will bring can't be fixed with franken-crops, and these are the conditions that are and will disrupt food production. If a farmer in Ontario finds temperatures too high for his particular cultivar, why not simply purchase seed from a supplier in Georgia?


Terry

AbruptSLR

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #833 on: June 22, 2016, 05:38:06 PM »
GMO:  when you don't have time to develop new strains "naturally."

New crop varieties 'can't keep up with global warming'


While this subject is far removed from any expertise that I may have, I can't help but wonder if this isn't an example of propaganda favoring GM crops?

While I concur that policy makers decision to rely on GMO crops to combat climate change is a bad idea; nevertheless, the linked reference indicates that the development of climate change resistant crops is falling behind policy maker assumptions; which increases the probability of increasing famine in coming decades:

Edit: I forgot to mention that the researchers have suggested that as an alternative to GMO use, heat tolerant crops could be more naturally developed by setting-up greenhouses in the likely affected countries now so that in a few decades they would have enough naturally selected heat resistant native crop seeds, but due to "othering" no policy makers are providing funding for such an extensive development of greenhouses.

A. J. Challinor et al, Current warming will reduce yields unless maize breeding and seed systems adapt immediately, Nature Climate Change (2016). DOI: 10.1038/nclimate3061


http://www.nature.com/nclimate/journal/vaop/ncurrent/full/nclimate3061.html

Abstract: "The development of crop varieties that are better suited to new climatic conditions is vital for future food production. Increases in mean temperature accelerate crop development, resulting in shorter crop durations and reduced time to accumulate biomass and yield. The process of breeding, delivery and adoption (BDA) of new maize varieties can take up to 30 years. Here, we assess for the first time the implications of warming during the BDA process by using five bias-corrected global climate models and four representative concentration pathways with realistic scenarios of maize BDA times in Africa. The results show that the projected difference in temperature between the start and end of the maize BDA cycle results in shorter crop durations that are outside current variability. Both adaptation and mitigation can reduce duration loss. In particular, climate projections have the potential to provide target elevated temperatures for breeding. Whilst options for reducing BDA time are highly context dependent, common threads include improved recording and sharing of data across regions for the whole BDA cycle, streamlining of regulation, and capacity building. Finally, we show that the results have implications for maize across the tropics, where similar shortening of duration is projected."

See also the linked article entitled: "Crop breeding is not keeping pace with climate change"

http://phys.org/news/2016-06-crop-pace-climate.html

Extract: "Crop yields will fall within the next decade due to climate change unless immediate action is taken to speed up the introduction of new and improved varieties, experts have warned."

« Last Edit: June 22, 2016, 06:16:25 PM by AbruptSLR »
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #834 on: June 22, 2016, 07:57:45 PM »
...
Flooding, drought and especially the inability of farmers to predict what the next season will bring can't be fixed with franken-crops, and these are the conditions that are and will disrupt food production. If a farmer in Ontario finds temperatures too high for his particular cultivar, why not simply purchase seed from a supplier in Georgia?

Terry

It would be great if the solution were that simple!  But besides temperature, other requirements for a particular strain likely include a certain range of timing and amount of precipitation, length of the growing season, the right amount of sunshine, a particular make-up of the soil, the presence of pollinators, no new pests or disease, etc. -- factors that in a new location may well differ from the new crop's original habitat.
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #835 on: June 22, 2016, 09:13:39 PM »
Something Strange and Terrible Is Happening to Mussels
Quote
Shells collected that are over 1,000 years old are on average 27 percent thicker than today’s shells, the researchers note in new paper in Proceedings of the Royal Society B. Thick shells were the norm until about the 1970s, when shells were 32 percent thicker than they are today. Then, things suddenly started to get thin fast.

The unsettling cause for the thinning shells is the rapidly acidifying waters of the Pacific Ocean. Essentially, the mussels are in the process of a slow dissolve in the acid bath they now spend their lives stewing in.
http://gizmodo.com/something-strange-and-terrible-is-happening-to-mussels-1782178554
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AbruptSLR

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #836 on: June 22, 2016, 09:36:11 PM »
...
Flooding, drought and especially the inability of farmers to predict what the next season will bring can't be fixed with franken-crops, and these are the conditions that are and will disrupt food production. If a farmer in Ontario finds temperatures too high for his particular cultivar, why not simply purchase seed from a supplier in Georgia?

Terry

It would be great if the solution were that simple!  But besides temperature, other requirements for a particular strain likely include a certain range of timing and amount of precipitation, length of the growing season, the right amount of sunshine, a particular make-up of the soil, the presence of pollinators, no new pests or disease, etc. -- factors that in a new location may well differ from the new crop's original habitat.

Plus there is the consideration that the reference highlights that crops in tropical regions are likely to be the first crops to be lost to climate change and there are no warmer areas to import seeds from (which is why the researchers suggest the use of greenhouses to subject the local crops to artificially warm local climates).  Furthermore, even if crop production in say Canada increases due to climate change, will "othering" limit the re-distribution of such a bonanza to negatively impacted countries?
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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #837 on: June 22, 2016, 10:38:48 PM »
I don't think there is any seeds even GMO that will survive what is coming ! We have to expect some large amplitude differences in temperature and humidity, happening very fast, we have to expect prolonged drought followed by torrential rains... Tropical and sub tropical areas will have to be abandoned in a short time (30 years ? 2 or 3°c global average ?) That is a good idea to try to use some green houses for seeds, but I think it is not only for seeds but also for the crops we will have to grow in protected areas as much as possible to ensure that there is a crop, in case the climate devastate our hopes and efforts.

TerryM

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #838 on: June 23, 2016, 01:05:35 AM »
My objection is only to GM crops as the solution to our problem. A solution that the lead author, Prof. Challinor, seems to dismiss saying, " - the problem will remain even for a magic GM crop"
My emphasis.


We've read of the suicides of rural Indian farmers after the introduction of GM crops. Why would we expect different results in Africa?
Locally I'm surrounded by Mennonite & Amish farms and their crops have evolved over time. Each farm dedicates a small portion of their acreage to experimental crops and driving by fields with one or two strips of unusual corn, wheat or whatever is a common sight.
They eschew GM, and to date have managed to stay ahead of rapidly changing conditions.
The gigantic wheat producers in the west seem to rely far more on crop insurance to remain afloat. I say afloat because on my 3 drives to the west coast over the last 12 years, each time the western crops were flooded out completely. There is no cure for this other than switching to aquaculture.
The Amish method will work as long as next year bears some resemblance to this year. Test a dozen varieties, then chose next year's planting based on which variety did best this year.
|n cases where a season is totally out of step with it's predecessors this method won't work, but neither will planting GM seeds.
Just as the Irish should not have relied on potatoes, perhaps Africans would be well advised to develop a taste for moringa?
http://borgenproject.org/native-crops-africas-food-crisis/

Terry

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #839 on: June 23, 2016, 10:46:44 AM »
yes, it is also developing a network of farmers who practice this method and exchanging, planting the seeds that you collect to sow again next time. The other point is that we are focusing too much on plant when it is the soil that has to be protected, so use some methods that do protect the soil is also a good idea.
http://www.seedsavers.org/

Sigmetnow

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #840 on: June 28, 2016, 02:04:19 PM »
"We didn't think this would happen for another 50 or 60 years."

Florida's coral reef system in rapid decay, scientists say
Quote
Scientists say Florida's coral reef system, the third-largest in the world, is in rapid decay, with a variety of threats edging the delicate ecosystem closer to collapse sooner than anyone believed possible.
...
While coral bleaching due to warmer water brought on by climate change and the spread of viruses that can damage coral have played a role in the reefs decline, Carmichael says some factors can be quickly and directly addressed, including nutrient loading from outflow pipes and dredging of the ports.

Along with dozens of scientists and volunteers at Project Baseline, Carmichael has done extensive work to examine the impact that six sewer outflows along the Florida coast have had on the coral reef.

"If the vast majority of tourists knew that they were swimming in this, I think they might reconsider where they go for their vacations," Carmichael said. "Most people simply don't believe this occurs."

According to Carmichael, the outflows dump hundreds of millions of gallons of waste into the ocean every day, including substantial amounts of phosphorus, nitrogen and other substances that have made the reefs "so grossly out of balance and under attack that they don't stand a reasonable chance of recovering."

Carmichael says that "nutrient loading," or the dumping of chemicals into the ocean water, has strengthened the coral reefs mortal enemy: Algae.

"It's actually become the dominant species on the reef," said Carmichael, who says the algae covers the ocean floor and smothers the reef by blocking sunlight.

http://www.cnn.com/2016/06/27/us/florida-coral-reefs/index.html
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #841 on: June 30, 2016, 01:37:05 PM »
More Than 100 Nobel Laureates Call Out Greenpeace For Anti-GMO Obstruction In Developing World
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More than 100 Nobel Prize recipients have signed a letter challenging the environmental NGO Greenpeace to halt its campaigns to prevent the introduction of potentially life saving options for the world’s poor, including  Golden Rice.

“We urge Greenpeace and its supporters to re-examine the experience of farmers and consumers worldwide with crops and foods improved through biotechnology, recognize the findings of authoritative scientific bodies and regulatory agencies, and abandon their campaign against ‘GMOs’ in general and Golden Rice in particular,” it says.

Golden Rice was designed as a solution to vitamin A deficiency, which some 250 million people worldwide suffer from, including 40 percent of the children under 5 in the developing world, according to WHO statistics cited by the scientists.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/stevensavage/2016/06/29/more-than-100-nobel-laureates-call-out-greenpeace-for-anti-gmo-role-in-developing-world/
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #842 on: July 02, 2016, 08:42:33 PM »
Another video on cricket farming.  Acceptance is rapidly increasing.

These Brothers Eat Crickets and They Think You Should Too
Quote
Darren Goldin and his brothers had been farming crickets for reptile feed when a UN report on the future of food highlighted insect protein as a good way to feed growing the world’s growing population. Today, the brothers’ business Entomo Farms is producing ten million crickets a week, all for human consumption.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/videos/2016-06-22/these-brothers-eat-crickets-and-they-think-you-should-too
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AbruptSLR

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #843 on: July 03, 2016, 06:33:28 PM »
The linked article discusses how sub-Saharan Africa food production may be the next big impact associated with climate change:

http://www.motherjones.com/environment/2016/06/climate-manifesto

Extract: "… sub-Saharan Africa is the only place on the planet where per capita food production is actually falling."
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #844 on: July 03, 2016, 09:25:51 PM »
Winemakers Warn of a Coming Burgundy ‘Apocalypse’
Blame the weather or dizzying price spikes, one of the world’s most storied wine regions appears to be in a bubble—and it may be about to burst.
Quote
For years, vintages of Burgundy have been smaller and smaller, while prices have gone up and up. Rain, floods, and hailstorms have decimated vineyards since 2010, especially in the Côte de Beaune (the southern part of the famous limestone strip that’s home to the most famous vineyards). Growers invested in weird anti-hail devices, but, alas, they haven’t worked. Regional businesses are facing a crisis of how to survive.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-06-28/winemakers-warn-of-a-coming-burgundy-apocalypse
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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #845 on: July 05, 2016, 01:42:25 PM »
In the below papers one can see how the use of FADs (fish aggregating devices) or automated FADs have changed the face and future of the Worlds fish stocks. These
automated, both fixed and free floating attract, summarize and notify the owners
when to come and catch all the surrounding fish. 


“The application of tracking buoys are likely the most significant technological development that has occurred within the last 20-30 years for increasing the efficiency of FAD fishing for tuna.”
http://www.fao.org/newsroom/common/ecg/1000505/en/stocks.pdf



The use of FADs in Tuna Fisheries
http://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/note/join/2014/514002/IPOL-PECH_NT(2014)514002_EN.pdf

2 Points: 1, The use of FADs in combination with newer refrigeration, specifically cold plate technologies that freeze caught fish to –30DegC
extend range and time a fishing vessel may stay at sea without complex cold chains dramatically increasing efficiency  . And 2.  Newer FADs with new battery technologies allow for a not entirely passive FAD.

Sigmetnow

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #846 on: July 05, 2016, 02:09:53 PM »
Getting food from the Haves to the Have Nots.

How Silicon Valley, Flush With Free Food, is Struggling With Food Waste
http://www.nbcnews.com/business/business-news/how-silicon-valley-flush-free-food-struggling-waste-n602586
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #847 on: July 07, 2016, 03:54:01 PM »
95% less water than field crops.  No pesticides or herbicides.  No long-distance transit. More on Aerofarm's vertical farming in a warehouse near New York City.

The World's Largest Vertical Farm Is Being Built in New Jersey
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AeroFarm is now constructing a 70,000-square-foot farm in an old steel mill. When it’s finished, AeroFarm claims the farm will yield 2 million pounds of lettuce and other greens yearly.
http://gizmodo.com/the-worlds-largest-vertical-farm-is-being-built-in-new-1783152722
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Sigmetnow

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #848 on: July 08, 2016, 12:30:51 AM »
To segregate "GMO" from "nonGMO", additional infrastructure would be required along the entire food supply chain, from farm gate to grain elevator to processor to manufacturer, in order to separate corn, soybeans, and canola.

The Costs of GMO Labeling
http://thefoodiefarmer.blogspot.com/2014/04/the-costs-of-gmo-labeling.html
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bligh8

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Re: Climate change, the ocean, agriculture, and FOOD
« Reply #849 on: July 08, 2016, 12:41:24 AM »
Within the first link the FAO describes the worlds increasing dependency on fish for food and jobs.

“The renewed focus on the so-called “blue world” comes as the share of fisheries production used by humans for food has increased from about 70 percent in the 1980s to a record high of more than 85 percent (136 million tonnes) in 2012.

At the same time per capita fish consumption has soared from 10 kg in the 1960s to more than 19 kg in 2012.

The new report also says fish now accounts for almost 17 percent of the global population’s intake of protein -- in some coastal and island countries it can top 70 percent.”

http://www.fao.org/news/story/en/item/231522/icode/

The link below outlines the general situation of world fish stocks.

http://www.fao.org/newsroom/common/ecg/1000505/en/stocks.pdf

Fair Winds
Bligh