Farming and climate change
New Zealand’s farmers are currently experiencing a severe drought that dairy farmer cooperative Fonterra warns may cost farmers $500M. The Government has been meeting with farmers this week to arrange a support package.
The effects of climate change are starting to be felt in New Zealand but it’s only a taste of things to come. Impacts include changes to rainfall patterns, more extreme weather events like flooding and droughts, and new pests and biosecurity problems. All these changes will make growing food much harder than it is now. Indeed the agriculture sector will perhaps be hit hardest of all as climate change begins to bite. This is not good for New Zealand. Agriculture plays an important part in our economy.
There’s an interesting irony here though.
