CLIMAS: Vulnerability to Climate Variability in the Farming Sector

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	Abstract
	Table of Contents

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Publications:
Vulnerability to Climate Variability in the Farming Sector

CLIMAS Report Series, CL1-02
December 2002

Marcela Vasquez-Leon, Colin Thor West, Barbara Wolf, Jane Moody, and Timothy J. Finan

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Abstract

This report focuses on the assessment of vulnerability and adaptation to climate variability among rural populations in the southwestern United States. It is the result of 18 months of field research in the Sulphur Springs Valley (SSV), Arizona among groundwater-dependent farmers and farm workers. The study had three main goals: 1) to assess the vulnerability of groundwater-dependent agriculture to climate variability, 2) to identify historical and current processes of adaptation to the vagaries of climate in the region - these refer to both system wide adaptations, and individual farmer's adaptations - and, 3) to assess the use of and needs for seasonal climate forecast information in agricultural decision making. The study identified a variety of farming livelihoods and examined the vulnerabilities faced by each type. The study also examined the relationship between ethnicity and vulnerability by taking a closer look at Hispanic farmers and migrant farm workers. Each sector faces different vulnerabilities and has developed different adaptations through time. The cumulative impact of the different buffers provided by technology, policy support, and industry-wide market forces has contributed to a general sense that the vulnerability of irrigated agriculture to climate variability is substantially reduced. However, not all farmers have had equal access to these buffering opportunities. Our study concludes that Hispanic farmers and workers remain more vulnerable to climate variability than their Anglo counterparts.

Table of Contents

Executive Summary

Vulnerability and Adaptation
Seasonal Climate Forecasts
Summary of Stakeholder Forecast Wishes
Recommendations

1. Vulnerability in the Sulphur Springs Valley

1.1 Introduction
1.2 Vulnerability Defined
1.3 Assessing Vulnerability within Agriculture
1.4 Ethnographic Methods in a Sectoral Assessment
1.5 The Sulphur Springs Valley: A Brief Introduction to the Region

2. The Physical Sources of Vulnerability

2.1 Topography and Climate in the Sulphur Springs Valley
2.2 Hydrology in the Sulphur Springs Valley
2.3 Climate, Water, and the Economics of Irrigated Farming in the Desert

3. A History of Climate Variability

3.1 The Prehistoric Period
3.2 Anglo-American Settlement and the Development of Ranching
3.3 Early Attempts at Rain-fed Farming
3.4 Contemporary Agriculture: New Technology, New Crops, and New Markets

4. The Wider Institutional Context

4.1 Government Programs
4.2 Crop Insurance
4.3 Agricultural Extension
4.4 Adaptations at the Regional Level: Agricultural Forecasts by the National Weather Service
4.5 The Sulphur Springs Valley Electrical Cooperative
4.6 System-level Adaptations and Their Effect on Farmers' Perceptions of Vulnerability to Climate Variability

5. Adaptation and Forecast Needs Among Corn, Fruit Orchards, and Chile Farmers

5.1 The Sophisticated Corn Farmer
5.2 Fruit Orchards
5.3 Chile Farmers
5.4 Conclusion

6. Adaptation and Forecast Needs Among Hay, Nut Orchards, and Vegetable Growers

6.1 Hay Farming
6.2 Nut Orchards
6.3 Vegetable Producers
6.4 Controlled Environment Agriculture: Greenhouses in the SSV
6.5 Conclusion

7. Hispanic Farmers and Agricultural Migrant Workers

7.1 Hispanic Farmers: A Preliminary Assessment
7.2 Migratory Farm Labor

8. Conclusions

8.1 General Adaptations
8.2 Particular Vulnerabilities
8.3 Buffering and the Physical Environment
8.4 Stakeholder Needs for Climate Information
8.5 Constraints to the Use of Climate Information
8.6 Recommendations

Endnotes

References Cited

Appendices

A. Farming Sector Interview Guide
B. Farm Subsidies and Crop Insurance in Cochise County, AZ
C. Crop Production in Cochise County
D. Meterological and Climatological Forecast Wishes of SSV Farmers