The Fifth National Climate Assessment (NCA5) was released on November 14, 2023. Assembled by teams of researchers from a range of climate change specialties, the publication represents a synthesis of current research including an evaluation of the current and future implications of climate change for life in the United States. As those paying attention to agriculture know, climate impacts have become increasingly apparent since the last assessment was published in 2018.
As with recent reports from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the Fifth National Climate Assessment presents a grim overall outlook with substantial climate shifts observed and predicted around the country. However, the publication also presents planned solutions to reduce emissions and transform toward increasingly robust farming systems.
This summary focuses on aspects most relevant to agriculture
The primary message regarding agriculture as a whole is that the risks to agricultural production are rising and will continue to rise as a result of climate change. The authors rank the Fifth National Climate Assessment as “very likely” with “very high confidence” of its accuracy. Despite the challenges ahead, substantial reason for optimism lies both in suggested routes to emissions reductions and adaptation of farming systems.
Excerpted from Jan. 17, 2024 National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition Blog. To read the full blog post, click HERE
