Extreme weather continues to wreak havoc on crops around the world.
What's happening?
The devastating floods that killed more than 200 people in Valencia, Spain, on Oct. 29 destroyed vast swaths of farmland, too. Thousands of hectares of citrus, persimmons, vegetables, and more were expected to be lost, Euronews reported. It and other regions grow most of the country's produce and 60% of its citrus fruits.
The losses totaled €1.1 billion ($1.2 billion), according to FreshFruitPortal.com. In addition to crops, infrastructure, machinery, livestock, and nurseries were wiped out. Landslides even made some fields "disappear."
Spain exports more oranges than any nation in the world, and avocados, lettuce, broccoli, and tomatoes are among its other products.
Why is this important?
Spain had been in a severe drought, and last year that caused shortages of peppers and cucumbers, among other produce, in the United Kingdom, per Euronews. Britain gets 25% of its fruit imports from Spain and 8% of its vegetable imports.
The global food supply chain could be affected, as tree crops and rice paddies that were inundated are at risk of future problems. Vegetables that were flooded and other produce that had not been harvested were of particular concern as well, FreshFruitPortal.com reported.
"The impacts of this agricultural disaster will be felt far beyond Spain," Euronews stated.
What's being done about extreme weather?
Getting a handle on such extreme weather is difficult if not impossible. The floods were precipitated in some areas by a year's worth of rain in hours.
In a long-term view, we can move to limit the warming of the planet that is driving such events. This means reducing the burning of dirty energy sources such as coal, gas, and oil, which add heat-trapping gases to the atmosphere. In turn, the rising global temperature exacerbates droughts, floods, and more, making them more frequent and more severe.
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Changes, big and small, that you make at home can contribute to a cooler Earth and a safer future. Installing solar panels, a heat pump, or an induction cooktop will also save you money, and washing your clothes in cold water and switching your light bulbs to LEDs don't require much effort at all.
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