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Soil scientists warn of worsening food crisis
Accra, Nov. 6, Ghanadot/GNA - Soil scientists have warned of
worsening food insecurity in the next decades unless pragmatic
measures were adopted to enhance soil productivity by minimising
the effects of changing weather patterns.
Quoting from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change,
which predicted that climate change, could cause potential crop
yields from rain-fed agriculture to decline by 50 per cent in
some African countries by 2050 while the population increased
from 770 million in 2005 to 1.5 billion in 2050, the scientists
said this would result in soaring prices for inadequate food
which would make most of the people hungry.
Dr. Kofi Budu Laryea, a Professor at the Department of Soil
Science, Faculty of Agriculture and Consumer Sciences,
University of Ghana, said the current farming practices (slash
and burn) involving burning to clear the land, taking away of
the top soil, did not encourage environmental sustainability but
rather fuelled climate change.
He was delivering a lecture at a climate change symposium in
Accra on Friday, organised by the Soil Science Society of Ghana,
on the topic: "Possible Impacts of Climate Change on Soil
Physical Processes and the Environment".
It was attended by members of the academia, civil society, NGOs
and representatives of United Nations agencies.
Prof. Laryea said those farming practices coupled with
industrial revolution had led to an increase in greenhouse
emissions causing high atmospheric temperature which had
resulted in the current rising sea surface levels and erratic
rainfall pattern globally.
He said the increasing effects of climate change meant that
there would be decrease in vegetation growth leading to less
addition of biomass to the soil which would lead to increased
organic matter decomposition and loss, the effects of which
would be land degradation spiral resulting in productivity
losses.
Prof. Laryea urged farmers to avoid any farming practice that
would involve tillage which would affect soil structure and
called for the adoption of conservation tillage, which allowed
30 per cent coverage of soil surface by residues after planting,
to make agricultural lands withstand the effects of climate
change.
Dr. Musah Farihou Mbenga, Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO)
Representative for Africa who spoke on the topic "Climate Change
and Food Security in Africa and Ghana in particular" called for
agricultural practice that would contribute to reduced
greenhouse gas emissions to improve the quality, availability
and efficiency of land use.
He said there should be policy focus on rural investments to
reduce the long-term effects of short-term climate variability
on food security, through crop insurance and incentives that
would encourage farmers to adopt better agricultural land use
practices.
Dr. Mbenga noted that the effects of climate change also held
bleak future for fisheries and aquaculture dependent people
since production and marketing costs would rise as against
decrease in buying and exports.
He stressed the need for improved decentralisation and bottom-up
processes in line with the high heterogeneity of agro-climatic
conditions leading to specific and innovative solutions.
Dr. Seth Kofi Akyea Danso, a Professor at Department of Soil
Science, Faculty of Agriculture and Consumer Sciences,
University of Ghana who spoke on the topic "Impacts of Soil
Management on Climate Change" called for proper management of
soil to improve its organic matter level for improved crop
yield.
Dr F.M. Tetteh, President of the Society, said the symposium was
to stimulate debate and generate ideas towards the forthcoming
United Nations Climate Change Conference scheduled for
Copenhagen in December.
He said the presentations would be made available to the
Parliamentary Select Committee on Agriculture for action to
improve the country's food production status in the face of
climate change.
GNA
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