AgroClimate – Tools for managing climate risk in agriculture

Abstract

Agricultural production is always subjected to risk associated with climate variabil­ity. Producers are often at the mercy of natural forces, which they cannot control, especially changes in rainfall from season to season and year to year. Variations from the “normal” climate can set the stage for other kinds of production risks, such as pest and disease incidence. Climate information and forecasts can be used to reduce production risk, increase resource use efficiency and the profitability of agricultural operations. However, simply providing better climate forecasts to po­tential users is not enough. Climate information only has value when there is a clearly defined adaptive response and a benefit once the content of the information is considered in the decision making process. In an effort to integrate all aspects of applying climate information and forecasts in agriculture, climate scientists, ag­ricultural engineers, agronomists, anthropologists, and extension specialists from the Southeast Climate Consortium (SECC) developed a web-based climate informa­tion system (http://agroclimate.org) to provide extension agents, producers, and natural resource managers with tools to aid their decision making processes in re­ducing risks associated with climate variability. AgroClimate tools are grouped in six categories: climate, crop yield, crop diseases, degree-days and chill hours, drought indices, and footprint calculators. Results from ongoing research at the University of Florida and other universities in the region are continuously incorporated into the system increasing its relevancy and contributing to a more sustainable and cli­mate resilient agricultural industry in the Southeast U.S.A.