OUTLOOK 2007 6 March 2007 |
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| Climate change challenges for the rural sector |
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| Changes in rainfall and temperature, driven by long term climate change, could result in reductions in agricultural productivity in some regions in Australia, delegates at the 2007 OUTLOOK conference in Canberra were told today. "Adaptation options, which include improved farming technologies, diversifying crop varieties, pest management, changing enterprise mix and investing in non-farm assets, will play a vital role in reducing the adverse economic impacts of the changes," Karen Schneider, Deputy Executive Director, ABARE said. However, the nature and extent of climate change impacts at the regional level remain uncertain, and improvements in agricultural productivity in some regions are also a possibility under some climate change scenarios. "Our analysis shows that the economic impacts of climate change are likely to be regionally differentiated, and will depend on the nature and extent of the climate change, the relative importance and structure of the agricultural sector in each region, and the level of adaptive capacity in the region," Ms Schneider emphasised. Dr. Mark Howden, of CSIRO Sustainable Ecosystems, also emphasised the importance of adaptation at the farm level and mitigation strategies at the national level to address the challenges of climate change. "The business case for adaptation in agriculture is getting stronger," he said. Dr. Neville Smith, Chief Scientist at the Bureau of Meteorology spoke of the importance of providing climate information to agricultural producers in order to promote optimal adaptation responses. He also discussed the on-going research and analysis in predicting future climates and highlighted the importance of integrating scientific information in agricultural decision making. The importance of measuring evaporative demand when assessing the impacts of climate change on plant growth was highlighted by Professor Graham Farquhar of the Australian National University. Professor Farquhar also emphasised the importance of adaptation measures such as improving water use efficiency and plant breeding as important strategies for reducing the adverse impacts of climate change in the agricultural sector. |
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| Copies of available speakers' presentation and papers are available at ABARE's OUTLOOK website, OUTLOOK 2007 or phone 02 6272 2010. For general media enquiries, contact Maree Finnegan, Media Coordinator on 02 6272 2260 or email mfinnegan@abare.gov.au. |
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