Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada
www.agr.gc.ca
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Climate Change
About 10 percent of Canada's greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions are from agricultural production, excluding GHG emissions from the use of fossil fuels or from fertilizer production.
The main GHGs emitted by agricultural activities are;
- nitrous oxide, which comes from using fertilizer and manure,
- methane, which is associated with cattle and livestock manure, and,
- carbon dioxide, which is released during soil cultivation.
Conversely, agriculture helps slow climate change by storing carbon on agricultural lands. Storing (or sequestering) carbon in soil as organic matter and in trees reduces carbon dioxide amounts in the atmosphere.
Mitigation
Many Beneficial Management Practices that focus on soil and water conservation have the added benefit of reducing GHG emissions.
Adaptation
The agricultural sector is also sensitive to climate variability and extreme events such as droughts or floods. In response to climate variability, producers alter their traditional management practices to maintain agricultural production. For instance, the location of various agricultural production types may shift according to changes in seasonal temperature averages and precipitation patterns. The Drought Watch website helps us understand these changing climate patterns better. The site provides current maps and information about long and short term agro-climate trends.
This paper identifies some current, major adaptations in the Prairie Provinces' agriculture and water resource sectors. Climate sensitive aspects of water supply and agriculture are compared to short to medium term trends in the agriculture sector as well as long term climate change.
Climate Change Research
Researchers used climate models to project climate change impacts on land suitability for prairie agriculture. They found that by 2040-2069, climate change would lead to a change in limitations over much of the Prairies' agricultural regions and some new opportunities may develop in northern areas. Appropriate adaptation measures are required to maintain the sustainability of spring-seeded small grain crops on the southern prairies and to take advantage of new potential opportunities.
Canadian Economic and Emissions Model for Agriculture (CEEMA)
The CEEMA report is one in a series of three Technical Reports which document an integrated agro-ecological economic modelling system, which can be used to simultaneously assess the economic and GHG emission impacts of agricultural policies.
Cost Benefit Analysis for Using Climate-based Models as a Risk Management Strategy in Saskatchewan
This analysis examines the feasibility of developing a system that uses climate-driven risk management products to help Saskatchewan farmers deal with the risks associated with climate variability. By studying a similar system in Manitoba, it was found that, with certain adjustments, such a system could also work in Saskatchewan.
