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Go back to Agricultural
meteorology in the Caribbean
by Mr. Steve Pollonais, Project Team Leader, The SIDS-Caribbean
Project, 23.05.2002.
Agriculture as it relates to food production is one of the principal
means by which a nation feeds itself.
In the Caribbean, food production is determined by its climate,
available land space, land use, pathogenic impacts (pests and diseases),
cultural practices and governmental policies.
Except for the larger islands, most farming is of the subsistence
variety with smallholdings and low production.
Larger holdings are usually oriented towards the agricultural
production of crops such as coffee, sugar, cocoa etc., which have ready
international markets and are therefore grown for export.
Over the years, there has been little change in the agricultural
methods of these small farmers. By
and large, they have remained in the traditional mode i.e. planting by the
phases of the moon and ancient lore as handed down by ancestors.
Failed harvests are common, as pests and diseases affect yields, by
insufficient rainfall, by too much rainfall, or by strong winds including
hurricanes and the like.
In the Caribbean as in the tropics, the major limiting climatic factor
for agriculture is rainfall. One
can either have too little or too much.
To a lesser degree, relatively high humidities all year round
encourage the growth of pests and diseases, which in turn affect yields
negatively. Strong winds can
cause physical damage to plants and in the case of hurricanes affect the
entire agricultural production of an island for several years thereafter.
Fortunately hurricanes are episodic events whose frequency is
normally such as to allow recovery in most cases.
Agrometeorology as an applied science came into its own during the
1940’s and has steadily gained acceptance by the agricultural community
for the remarkable impact it has had on increasing yields in otherwise
poorly performing acreages. In
the Caribbean only some of the larger agricultural concerns indulge in its
practice. However, lately
several national services have been promoting agrometeorological
applications in their bid to convince by demonstration, the value of the
scientific approach. (This is
true for Trinidad and Tobago, which already has a network of Automatic
Weather Stations and a prospective agrometeorologist on training.
Barbados has been known to apply agrometeorological methods to its
agriculture, particularly sugarcane and Jamaica has been a pioneer in the
English-speaking Caribbean). The
work however is uphill. Nevertheless,
it is vitally important to make this impact on food production if the
region is to be successful in feeding itself.
It is in this regard that an intervention by the SIDS-Caribbean
Project must be seen as timely.
The SIDS-Caribbean project intervenes through its Component–2:
“The Rehabilitation of Instrument Networks”, by the acquisition of
Automatic Weather Stations equipped with sensors that provide data for use
in agricultural applications for use by the meteorologist. These stations
are to be deployed throughout the region in those areas considered
strategic to this purpose. Meteorologists
in collaboration with their counterparts in Agronomy, Agricultural
Extension, Plant Pathology etc., can offer advice to the farmer on the
best times to plant, on phenological stage management, pest and disease
monitoring and advice on preventative action to be taken to minimize
attacks, irrigation schedulings, on when the harvest can be expected and
the size of the yield. While
one cannot do anything about the effects of very severe weather as in
hurricanes, early warnings can permit certain actions that may minimize
losses.
Predictive climate information, as is increasingly being made available
through the use of Global and regional climate models, and which is
encouragingly becoming more accurate, is being made more so by the
increasing input of meteorological observations worldwide.
This is particularly useful for the forward planning of
agricultural production, land use and crop selection.
(Global Climate Model projections are now being used in seasonal
forecasting with applications for agricultural planning.
Climate Change information will therefore determine the efficiency
of food production through the application of meteorological parameter
changes to plant response). The
SIDS-Caribbean project aims to assist in this crusade towards food
security by providing for the generation of basic climate data and the
necessary technology and training to meet this challenge.
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