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Perception Of Farmers On The Effect Of Climate Change On Farm Produce
CHAPTER ONE -- [Total Page(s) 4]
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CHAPTER ONE
1.0 INTRODUCTION
The theme of this research is based
on the perception of farmers of the effect of climate change on farm
produce. It has been logically argued that climate change may positively
and negatively affect the growth of crop in agricultural system.
In
some broken down analysis, climate is a sole determinant for the
success of farm produce and its harvest as well. Emphasis are hereby
made below under some given headings.
1.1BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY
According
to Kolbert., (2006) climate encompasses the temperatures, humidity,
atmospheric pressure, winds, rainfall, atmospheric particle count and
numerous other meteorological elements in a given region over long
periods of time, as opposed to the term weather, which refers to
current activity of these same elements.
The climate of a location is
affected by its latitude, terrain, altitude, persistent ice or snow
cover, as well as nearby oceans and their currents.
Climates can be classified using parameters such temperature and rainfall to define specific climate types. (Seiz, 2007)
According
to Haeberli, (2008) from Montana State University, climate change is
any long term significant change in the expected patterns of average
weather of a specific region (or, more relevantly to contemporary
socio-political concerns, of the earth as a whole) over an appropriately
significant period of time.
<
Susanne, and Veizer (2008)
revealed that climate change reflects abnormal variations to the
expected climate within the earth’s atmosphere and subsequent effects
on other parts of the earth, such as in the ice caps over durations
ranging from decades to million of years.
Reports revealed by the
inter-governmental panel on climate change (IPCC 2007) stated that
climate change in the research of a great many factors including the
dynamic processes of the earth itself, external forces including
variation in sunlight intensity, and more recently by human activities,
which might in future be deliberate geo-engineering. External factors
that can shape climate are often called climate forcing and include such
processes as variations in solar radiation, deviations in the Earths
orbit and the level of greenhouse gas concentrations.
There have been
so many variations on carbondioxide(Co2) during the last 50 million
years. The increased carbondioxide level are thought to exacerbate the
heating effects of the greenhouse effect by reading the re-radiation of
heat from the sun and, therefore, increasing the temperature contained
in the atmosphere.
As the ability of the atmosphere to capture and
recycle energy emitted by the Earth’s surface is essential to a stable
climate, this heightened temperature may introduce a de-stabilizing
influence and potentially affect global weather patterns and eventually,
long-term climate change.
(Source: Buckley, and Wallace, 2008)
Framers
efforts on yielding mass harvest and encouraging large plantation may
be seriously terminated and hampered from the perception of climate
change. Where alternative instruments are not introduced to counteract
the factors militating against favourable climate on farm produce this
may lay a set back on agricultural input and output by our farmers.
It
obvioused that climate change had contributed towards initiating basic
subsistence farming system order than the mechanized farming product for
large market of farm produce.
For example, a region where climate
change had hampered the possibility of regular actual rainfall variably,
water system irrigation can be applied to artificially supply wet
contents on crop growth and improving regular harvest.
Farmers in
Nigeria today are faced with variable challenges on climate change
making the agricultural sector prone to difficulties in enhancing crop
production as a result of weak alternative facilities, equipments and
scientific instruments to improve the range of farming.
Dr Daniel
(2008) from the University of Maiduguri revealed findings that climate
change plays a significant role in agriculture by setting up limits for
crop production. The main climatic elements in agriculture are
temperature, moisture, sunlight, wind and evaporation. Most crops
are sensitive to episodes of high temperature. High temperatures between
45oc and 55oc that occur for at least 30 minutes directly, damage crop
leaves in most environments, and lower temperatures between 35-40oc can
be damaging if they persist longer.
Awosika, and Ajayi, (2002)
opined that vulnerability of crops to damage by high temperatures
varies with developmental stage thus, high temperatures during
reproductive development are particularly injurious. For example, to
maize at tussling, to soybean at flowering and to wheat at grain
filling.`
CHAPTER ONE -- [Total Page(s) 4]
Page 1 of 4
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ABSRACT - [ Total Page(s): 1 ]The research was carried out based on the perception of farmers of the effect of climate change on farm produce.The aim of the study was to identify various climatic factors that can affect farming system which include sunrise (hot temperature), winter, equinox, rainfall, summer, coldness, wind etc and also places where lakes, rivers ocean / sea, stream, rocks/ hills forest etc are available .Critically, the study revealed that rainfall and dry season are the common features in Nigerian climat ... Continue reading---
