How Extreme Weather Is Affecting U.S. Small Farmers 

The Impact of Extreme Weather on Small Farmers

Every morning at 5 a.m., Jason Schmidt, owner of Grazing Plains Farm LLC., a small dairy farm based in Whitewater, Kans., starts his first milking of the day. The 42-year-old fifth generation farmer has been tending to his 70 cows on a daily basis for the past 12 years, but has become increasingly worried about the future of his farm.

His fears of financial stability related to his job are due to extreme weather conditions over the past year that affect his cows’ health and milk production. In the last two weeks alone, heat waves in Kansas brought temperatures in the high 90s and 100s, adding onto the difficulties many Kansas farmers have been facing due to a long lasting drought. The problem extends beyond the U.S., though; this July marked the earth’s hottest month on record.

Extreme Weather Challenges for Small Farmers

Extreme weather patterns are posing difficulties across the agricultural community, but especially among small farmers, who have limited funds to deal with inconsistent weather that is affecting their cattle or crops.

Tom Giessel, a 70-year-old farmer who cropshares his land in Larned, Kans., notes that extreme heat and lack of precipitation poses a problem for dryland farmers that depend on rainfall instead of irrigation to tend their land. “When you’re solely depending upon what comes from the sky and you get these streaks of five or six months with very little rain, it has a greater impact,” says Geissel.

Farmers, who need to be able to predict and have knowledge about the weather, are now being put in an especially precarious financial position.

The Effect of Weather Extremes on Dairy Farmers

That poses a big problem for dairy farmers, whose cattle heavily rely on proper feed and water to produce high levels of milk. “Cows can’t sweat heat off so they have a real hard time with heat,” Darren Turley, the executive director of Texas Association of Dairymen, tells TIME. “A dairy cow runs a lot of water through her body to make milk so she needs to drink a lot of water. When you start getting that really high temperature, that inhibits our ability to put that into production.”

While Schmidt says none of his cows have suffered serious illness due to increased temperatures, cows eat less to combat heat stress, meaning his cattle have lost weight and their appetite. Schmidt has seen a decrease in milk production of about 15-20%, which is costly for a farmer with a small, approximately 300-acre property. Nationwide, the dairy industry loses $1,500 million annually due to the heat stress dairy cows face.

The Impact on Crop Production and Soil Health

Schmidt also heavily relies on rain to help grow pasture and other forms of feed for his cows. But crops like hay and pasture grasses rely on subsoil moisture, which have been the most affected by the drought. Extreme weather also impacts the soil ecosystem—which is full of living organisms and microorganisms that help plants absorb nutrients and grow.

“When there’s an extreme drought, extreme high temperatures, lack of water or even too much [water],” says Omanjana Goswami, an interdisciplinary scientist with the Food and Environment Program at the Union of Concerned Scientists, “it can affect the multiple sorts of chemical, physical, and biological activities that go on in the soil that we don’t really see with our naked eyes.” Droughts can also cause the soil to release more nitrogen, which later breaks down in nitrous oxide, a more potent greenhouse gas that can warm the atmosphere some 300 times more than carbon dioxide.

Extreme heat and drought combined have caused Giessel to average 11.4 bushels per acre for his winter wheat crop, down from his average yield of 50-70 bushels per acre. Schmidt’s father, who also grows wheat, has also seen some crops grow poorly. He’s allowed his son to harvest those crops as feed for his cows, but Schmidt is still feeling the brunt of the drought. And they’re not alone. Exposure to heat has cost the U.S. agriculture sector more than 300 million hours of labor annually since 2012.

The Culture of Farming and the Need for Conservation

Aside from the recent heat wave and drought Kansas farmers are confronting, long term industrial agriculture has also played a role in stripping soils of nutrients and impacted its ability to “adapt to changing conditions,” says Goswami.

Much of that is due to a culture of farming that encourages farmers to “Get big or get out,” as 1970s United States Department of Agriculture Secretary Earl Butz coined it. Consolidation has been a prominent issue in the agricultural industry, as the average crop size has shifted from midsize (between 100 and 999 acres) to large operations (having 2,000 or more acres of land). That means small farmers are increasingly selling their cattle or land if crops have begun to decrease, two known effects of a D3 drought level status in Kansas.

Research shows that dairy farms have been consolidating at a rate faster than any other agricultural sector, as the midpoint herd size has increased from 80 in 1987 to 1,300 in 2017. Turley says that is currently being seen in central Texas, which has been enduring a D3 level drought since last year. “You’re seeing farms go ahead and sell [because] in Central Texas, [even] if it rained tomorrow, we would be doing good to get maybe one more partial cutting of grass, which would not sustain you through the winter months,” Turley says. “Because last year was a drought, we fed all the hay we bought…Now there’s no reserve. There are not many options…We’re seeing various farms go out of business and it’s a huge economic impact.”

The Need for Conservation Programs and Support

In periods of economic hardship, farmers can rely on supplemental programs like crop or milk insurance for financial support. But farmers tell TIME that many of these programs support a culture of overproduction instead of agricultural conservation, which builds the health and quality of the soil.

Farmers are looking for broader support in this year’s Farm Bill, which is a package of legislation that sets food policy in the U.S. and is revisited every five years. Much of the money in that bill goes towards food assistance programs, but there is also legislation that decides how much money is allocated towards crop insurance or conservation programs, which teach farmers how to integrate conservation practices on their farms.

Goswami says that these conservation programs help farmers build resilient agricultural systems through crop rotation, encouraging crop diversification, and integrating other practices to improve the condition of the land. These programs have been quite successful, seeing a near four-time return on investment for farmers while also keeping

SDGs, Targets, and Indicators Analysis

1. Which SDGs are addressed or connected to the issues highlighted in the article?

• SDG 2: Zero Hunger
• SDG 13: Climate Action
• SDG 15: Life on Land

The article discusses the challenges faced by farmers due to extreme weather conditions, such as heat waves and droughts. These challenges directly impact food production and agricultural sustainability, which are key concerns addressed by SDG 2 (Zero Hunger). Additionally, the article highlights the role of climate change in exacerbating these weather extremes, connecting to SDG 13 (Climate Action). The impact of extreme weather on soil health and biodiversity also relates to SDG 15 (Life on Land).

2. What specific targets under those SDGs can be identified based on the article’s content?

• SDG 2.4: By 2030, ensure sustainable food production systems and implement resilient agricultural practices that increase productivity and production.
• SDG 13.1: Strengthen resilience and adaptive capacity to climate-related hazards and natural disasters in all countries.
• SDG 15.3: By 2030, combat desertification, restore degraded land and soil, including land affected by desertification, drought, and floods, and strive to achieve a land degradation-neutral world.

The article emphasizes the need for sustainable food production systems and resilient agricultural practices to cope with extreme weather conditions. This aligns with SDG 2.4. The discussion of the impacts of heat waves, droughts, and extreme weather on farmers’ livelihoods relates to the target of strengthening resilience and adaptive capacity to climate-related hazards (SDG 13.1). The mention of the effects of drought on soil health and the release of greenhouse gases connects to the target of combating desertification and restoring degraded land (SDG 15.3).

3. Are there any indicators mentioned or implied in the article that can be used to measure progress towards the identified targets?

• Indicator for SDG 2.4: Proportion of agricultural area under productive and sustainable agriculture.
• Indicator for SDG 13.1: Number of deaths, missing persons, and directly affected people attributed to disasters per 100,000 population.
• Indicator for SDG 15.3: Proportion of land that is degraded over total land area.

The article does not explicitly mention these indicators, but they can be used to measure progress towards the identified targets. The proportion of agricultural area under productive and sustainable agriculture can indicate the adoption of resilient agricultural practices (SDG 2.4). The number of people affected by climate-related disasters can reflect the resilience and adaptive capacity of communities (SDG 13.1). The proportion of degraded land can measure progress in combating desertification and restoring land (SDG 15.3).

Table: SDGs, Targets, and Indicators

Behold! This splendid article springs forth from the wellspring of knowledge, shaped by a wondrous proprietary AI technology that delved into a vast ocean of data, illuminating the path towards the Sustainable Development Goals. Remember that all rights are reserved by SDG Investors LLC, empowering us to champion progress together.

Source: time.com

Join us, as fellow seekers of change, on a transformative journey at https://sdgtalks.ai/welcome, where you can become a member and actively contribute to shaping a brighter future.