Weatherproofing agriculture with conservation agriculture.

Abstract

Abstract This chapter elaborates on why no-till conservation agriculture (CA) - comprising no or minimal soil disturbance, permanent soil cover, and cropping system diversity, plus other good agricultural practices - is better able to weatherproof agriculture compared with tillage agriculture. This is elaborated by examining soil management in relation to the water-related ecosystem services for CA and tillage-based agriculture. The chapter focuses conceptually on the narrower topic of the adaptation of farming practices to address climatic variability and change. This focus relates to the adaptation of production systems and farming systems as well as of ecosystems and landscapes to address climatic variability and change, including devising solutions at the level of farmer groups and community-based actions within watersheds and beyond. The adaptation of the food and agriculture systems is relevant to this discussion because some of the weatherproofing actions that may be taken at the sector level can have a direct impact on the weatherproofing of production systems and practices at the farm and field level. Other water-related aspects such as soil formation and its water-related functions, agricultural land use and water services at the watershed level and climate-change adaptability involving adaptation and mitigation are briefly touched upon. The chapter highlights the paradigm shift that is currently under way in which conventional tillage-based production systems are being replaced by climate-smart CA systems to achieve sustainable production intensification.