| When you think of global warming, you might envision | | | | fertilization is most helpful for crops such as wheat, |
| dramatic scenes like melting glaciers and flooded | | | | soybeans, and rice. Carbon dioxide fertilization is a |
| coastlines. Agriculture is yet another area that will be | | | | beneficial by-product of global warming. However, this |
| seriously affected by climatic changes. Farming | | | | benefit may all be in vain. When global warming pushes |
| challenges may become even more intense. Today it | | | | ground level ozone to higher stages, the carbon |
| is even more likely that a farmer will face droughts, | | | | dioxide fertilization is voided out by tropospheric ozone. |
| floods, heat waves, and hurricanes. These types of | | | | These ozone levels are influenced by both emissions |
| weather events that are so traumatic for farming will | | | | and temperature. When the temperature rises, the |
| certainly be less rare. | | | | ground ozone levels will rise as well. |
| In regions that are already warm, global warming will | | | | The overall predictions for farming in North America |
| cause the plants to languish in the heat. Soil | | | | are neither all bad nor all good. Crops are expected to |
| evaporation rates will be very high, leaving parched | | | | benefit from the effects of global warming in many |
| earth and burned plants. Often rain will come down | | | | regions for a short period of time. Crops will suffer in |
| hard when it does come, leading to greater than usual | | | | some places due to regional variations. The Great |
| soil erosion. | | | | Plains are now more susceptible to drought. However, |
| Some studies show that the news of global warming | | | | Canada will probably benefit from the added heat, |
| is not all bad for farming, at least not in the short run. | | | | causing farming of some crops to shift north. |
| An increase in temperature has some temporary | | | | Right now, and in the near future, global warming does |
| benefits. For a while, it will simply mean more time for | | | | not seem to pose a serious risk for North American |
| crops to mature because of a longer growing season. | | | | farmers in general. There may even be some positive |
| This is especially true of regions where the spring and | | | | outcomes. However, in the long run, nothing will be able |
| fall were once quite cool. | | | | to mitigate the damage to agriculture that will occur if |
| Strangely enough, all the extra carbon dioxide in the air | | | | global warming is not slowed or stopped. |
| also has a fertilizing affect on crops. This type of | | | | |