Bella Waters

ATMO 1020

CALIFORNIA FARMERS
IMPACTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE
THE BREAK DOWN
What’s so important about California?
California produces a sizable majority of many American fruits, vegetables,
and nuts: 99 percent of artichokes, 99 percent of walnuts, 97 percent of kiwis, 97
percent of plums, 95 percent of celery, 95 percent of garlic, 89 percent of
cauliflower, 71 percent of spinach, and 69 percent of carrots (and the list goes on
and on). Change in the climate are causing farmers to adapt or give up farming
because the conditions are just not ideal anymore. To better help understand these
changes, the chart below is a good place to start.
INCREASED PESTS AND
INCREAD SOIL INVASIVE SPECIES
DEGRADATION CAUSING
LACK OF CROPS GETTING
NUTRIENTS PRICE OF PRODUCE
WILL GO UP WITH A
REDUCED CHILL HOURS
HIGHER DEMAND BUT
FOR CROPS INCREASING
LOW PRODUCTION
VULNERABILITY TO
DISEASE
DROUGHT
(CALIFORNIA HEAT WAVES
FARMERS USE 80%
OF ALL WATER) CLIMATE CHANGE
LOSS OF CROP
IMPACTS IN
QUALITY AND YIELDS
CALIFORNIA
SPENING EXTRA
MONEY TO DRILL UP CHANGES IN
GROUND WATER WEATHER
PATTERNS FARMLANDS NEAR
FLOODPLAINS ARE MORE
POLLINATION TIMING PRONED TO FLOODING
SOIL SALINITY
IS AFFECTED LEADING RUINING CROPS
RAISING DUE TO SEA
TO A NEED FOR CROP LEVEL RISE (CROPS
MODIFICATION CAN’T ADAPT)
How Do the Farmers Adapt?

Long-term adaptations:

-research is being done to recreate genomes for drought-tolerant crops

-increased use of recycled water to supplement lack of water

-emergency response plans for severe drought

The picture above shows the effects of
severe drought where crops are now
unable to be grown. When the soil
dries out it is stripped of all the
nutrients needed for life.
The picture above shows the effects of
a heat wave. Although the soil is
nutrient enough to yield crops, the
intense heat burns and dries out the
crops leaves. This leads to lower crop
harvests and ruined plants.
 Reference

Palmer, Brian. The C-Free Diet. SLATE, 2013,

https://slate.com/technology/2013/07/california-grows-all-of-our-fruits-and-
vegetables-what-would-we-eat-without-the-state.html. Accessed 23 April
2019.

State of California. Agriculture and Climate Change Adaptation. California Climate

Change, 2019, https://www.climatechange.ca.gov/adaptation/agriculture.html.
Accessed 23 April 2019.