documentation of selected adaptation strategies to climate ... · documentation of selected...

DOCUMENTATION OF SELECTEDADAPTATION STRATEGIES

TO CLIMATE CHANGEIN RICE CULTIVATION

East Asia Rice Working Group

2009

ANNI MITIN, Ph. D.

4Adaptation Strategies to Climate Change in Rice Cultivation

East Asia Rice Working Groupc/o Action for Economic Reforms (AER)3rd Floor, # 40 Matulungin St., Central DistrictQuezon City, 1100 PhilippinesTelefax: (632) 426-5626Email: [email protected]

Website: www.eastasiarice.org

Layout Design by Nonoy Regalado

Copyright 2009EAST ASIA RICE WORKING GROUPAll Rights Reserved


Contents

Executive Summary 7

Introduction 8

Objectives and Methodology 10

Climatic Conditions forRice Cultivation 11

Adaptation Strategies toClimate Change in Relationto Rice Farming 13

Case 1PROLONGED COLD SPELLLocation: Northern Vietnam 15

Case 2UNPREDICTABLE FLOODS/INUNDATIONS,ERRATIC RAINS, AND DROUGHTSLocations: Long An, Can Tho, Dong Thap,An Giang / Vietnam 16

Case 3UNPREDICTABLE FLOODS,DROUGHTS AND SOIL EROSIONLocation: Lovethom. Cambodia 19

Case 4PROLONGED DRY SPELL ANDDROUGHT IN JULY 2007Locations: Central Luzon, Cagayan Valley,And Ilocos Region, Philippines 20


Case 5EXTREME HEAT, DROUGHTS AND WITHANNUAL OCCURRENCE OF FLASH FLOODINGLocation: The village of Sepaka, Island ofMindanao, Southern Philippines 22

Case 6DROUGHT IN 2006Location: Rice-growing provinces ofAnhui, Hunan and Hubei, China 24

Case 7HIGH SALINITY LEVEL OF RAINFED RICE FIELDSLocations: Isaan region Thailand(Khon Kaen province) 25

Case 8THE DRY SEASON AND FOREST FIRELocation: Central Kalimantan, Indonesia 28

Case 9GRADUAL INCREASE IN SEA LEVELS,FORCING SALTWATER FROM BAY OFBENGAL INTO LOWLANDLocation: Small Village Of Munshiganj,Southwestern Bangladesh 30

Analysis and Conclusions 32

Annex 1: Some Rice Facts 35

References 36

About the Author 41


This paper highlights published cases re-lated to various climatic conditions thathave impacts on rice cultivation practices.Due to the needs to continue rice farm-ing, whether for traditional, cultural oreconomic reasons, rice farmers in Asiaresorted to various adaptation practicesthat might have deviated from their com-mon practices. This includes the introduc-tion of modern technologies or new ricevarieties that promised to withstand theeffects of adverse climatic conditions.

There are various climate changesthat are commonly addressed. These in-clude heavy monsoon rains, droughts,forest fire, rising sea level, temperature in-crease, intense rainfall, typhoons, frequent

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

of extreme weather variability, floods, highsalinity, warmer winter and cooler sum-mers, reduced precipitation, prolong coldspell, inappropriate rain, soil erosion anddry spell. This research studied the im-pacts of droughts, floods, and cold spellson rice production in Thailand, Vietnamand the Philippines.

Various adaptation strategies wereadopted by farmers to address the effectsof climate change. These strategies wereundertaken, either voluntarily or by ac-cepting recommendations given by agri-cultural experts and institutions that osten-sibly will lead to better rice production ordiscontinue rice farming and shift to othereconomic activities.


Asian farmers account for about 92 per-cent of the world's total rice production.More than 550 million tons of rice is pro-duced annually around the globe, mainlyfrom India, China, Japan, Indonesia, Thai-land, Burma, andBangladesh.1 Ninetyper cent of rice in Asiais produced by smallfarmers who dependson rice farming fortheir livelihood andfood security (ANU,2006).

The climate cha-nge (CC) indicatorsthat are commonly as-sociated with rice pro-duction are exam-ined, and their biophysical impacts on ag-ricultural environments and crops, par-ticularly rice have been identified as:

physiological effects on rice crops,fields, surroundiing forests andlivestockchanges in land, soil and waterresourcesincreased weed and pest chal-lenges;sea level rise

INTRODUCTION

increase in temperatureincrease in CO2

erratic weather conditions

Climatic variability, such as abnor-mal changes in air temperature and rain-

fall, resulting in erraticpatterns, frequencyand intensity ofdrought and flood pre-sents long-term impli-cations for the viabilityof the rice farming eco-systems. As climaticpatterns change, so asthe spatial distributionof agro-ecologicalzones, habitats, distri-bution patterns ofplant diseases and

pests, biodiversity and water availabilitypatterns, which can have significant im-pacts on rice and other crop productionfor the farming communities.

The secondary level of the CC im-pacts spilt over onto the socio-economiccircumstances following the manifesta-tions of the CC and its biophysical impactson the rice farming communities. Thesesocio-economic impacts could be indi-cated by:

Vietnam exports nearly 4.5million tons of rice annually.Vietnam, the second largest riceexporter, is also a major supplierof rice for the World FoodProgram.

Thailand is the largest riceexporter and exports 9.5 milliontons annually.

Approximately 30 million tonsof rice was supplied to the globalmarket in 2007.

(Macan-Markar, 2008)

1 Rice Trade (2008)


decline in yields and production;reduced marginal GDP from agri-culture;fluctuations in world market prices;changes in geographical distribu-tion of trade regimes;

increased number of people at riskof hunger and food insecurity;

migration and civil unrest.

Based on the general descriptions ofCC related indicators, this research in-tended to document relevant physiologi-cal and environmental indicators that

have been reported to have direct impactson rice cultivation practices and produc-tion. The CC indicators include:

enhanced CO2 on crop growthhigher temperatureWater availabilityClimate variability (extremities) -intense drought, cyclones, ty-phoon, heat wavesSoil fertility and erosionPests and diseasesSea-level riseSoil or water salinity


Research Objectives

This research aims to provide a referencetowards understanding the impacts of cli-mate change on rice production. It alsointends to provide information on strate-gies or methods that were adopted in han-dling or overcoming the effects of adverseclimatic conditions.

It is intended that this document willbe of use to civil society groups or farm-ers' groups in Southeast Asia.

The cases that were studied representdifferent climatic conditions. Differentstrategies adopted for handling a similarclimatic condition experienced by differ-ent communities in different regions arealso compared. Different communities indifferent areas or provinces may be con-fronted with similar or different climaticfactors but they have their ways of adapt-ing.

Methodology

This research mainly used document re-view. The information, data and cases pre-sented has been collected and compiledfrom the internet and published materials.

Limitation of the study

The cases documented in this report mighthave limited details due to the unavail-ability of information, particularly withregard to adaptation strategies for rice cul-tivation. Limited facilities or resourceshave also prevented in accessing neces-sary information which required accessfees. Various published cases were en-countered through the research, but se-lections for this report were confined tocases in the Philippines, Thailand, China,Vietnam, Cambodia and Indonesia asthey were found to have more necessaryand in-depth details for the purpose of thisdocumentation.

OBJECTIVES AND METHODOLOGY


Different varieties of rice cultivated re-spond differently to climatic factors. How-ever, there are a number of climatic con-ditions that are essentially crucial for opti-mum growth of rice plants or paddy.

Rainfall

Rainfall is the most important weather fac-tor for successful rice cultivation. Under-standably, the distribution of rainfall isgreatly influenced by the physical featuresof the terrain, the situation of the moun-tains or plateau, as well as the geographi-cal locations on the globe.

Temperature

Rice is a tropical and sub-tropical plant.As such, temperature is another climaticfactor that significantly influences the de-velopment, growth and yield of rice. Ricerequires a fairly high temperature between20°C and 40°C.2 The optimum tempera-ture of 30°C during day time and 20°Cduring night time seems to be more favor-able for the development and growth ofrice crop.

Day length or Sunshine

Sunlight is important for the development

and growth of the plants. Sunlight is thesource of energy for plant life. The yieldof rice is influenced by the solar radiationparticularly during the last 35 to 45 daysof its ripening period. The effect of solarradiation is more profound where water,temperature and nitrogenous nutrients arenot limiting factors. Bright sunshine withlow temperature during ripening periodof the crop helps in the development ofcarbohydrates in the grains.

Some of the common issues on ricecultivation:

About 90% of the farmers in Asiaare small, marginal and are poor inresource.

CLIMATIC CONDITIONSFOR RICE CULTIVATION

IRRI reported that averagedaytime temperaturesincreased by 0.35oC since1979.The yield of rice was reportedto strongly correlate to night-time temperatures. Theincrease of night-timetemperatures around 1.1oCover a quarter century wascorrelated to the decliningyields.IRRI experiments indicatedthat a one-degree increase in

2. Rice Trade, as accessed in August 2008.


In many parts of Southeast Asia,use of hybrid rice varieties hasincreased in attempt to adapt toclimate change, which eventuallycould lead to loss of traditionalvarieties, hence agro-biodiversity.

Poor soil and environmentalmanagement have resulted in casesof soil erosion, loss of plant nutri-ents and moisture.

Increased use of chemical fertiliz-ers and pesticides coupled withlow environmental managementcontribute to climate change andsocio-economic vulnerability.

Heavy infestation of weeds, insectsor pests is still common in ricefields.

Unpredictable monsoon onsetoften results in delayed and pro-longed transplanting season,particularly in rain-fed lowlands.

The average seasonalconsumptive use of water forrice cultivation is 795 mm,where 72% of this amount isused for evapotranspiration and28% for percolation.


This research explored two types of ad-aptation strategies:

Autonomous Adaptation Planned Adaptation

Autonomous Adaptation (AA) refersto the reaction of farmers to address prob-lems at farm level. This strategy is basedon the farmers' own initiatives and creativ-ity to overcome a climatic-related prob-lem in their rice farming activities, whetherthey consciously or unconsciously ableto relate the cause to climate change. Au-tonomous Adaptation strategy also reflectson the experience and knowledge (tradi-tional or cultural) of farmers in rice farm-ing. These strategies include changingcrops or using different harvest and plant-ing/sowing dates, or digging ponds to storerain water in their fields.

Another form of adaptation strategiesis categorized as Planned Adaptation(PA), which refers to a conscious policyoption or response strategies that are com-monly introduced to the farmers by au-thoritative figures, including governmentand research institutions. This adaptationis often multi-faceted in nature, aimed ataltering the adaptive capacity of the agri-cultural system or facilitating specific ad-

aptations, including deliberate crops se-lection, extensive irrigation project, andnew policies that affect farming practices.This adaptation could present long-termimpacts as major structural changes takeplace to overcome adversity such aschanges in rice variety to maximize yieldunder new conditions; application of newtechnologies; new land managementtechniques; and water-use efficiency re-lated techniques.

Examples of adaptation strate-gies in rice cultivation andproduction

Investments in water storageDevelopment of drought-tolerantcropsCrop diversification for thosefarmers at greatest risk

Water-saving technologies such asalternate wetting and drying irriga-tion and aerobic rice (a productionsystem in which specially devel-oped, high yielding varieties aregrown in well-drained, non-puddle, and non-saturated soils).Molecular marker techniques tospeed up the cultivation process;Geographic analysis of vulnerable

ADAPTATION STRATEGIES TO CLIMATECHANGE IN RELATION TO RICE FARMING


regions (where the rice crop isalready experiencing critical tem-perature levels);Regional climate modelling to iden-tify future "tilting points" of rice pro-duction (temperatures or CO2 levelsabove which major yield losses areexperienced, for example);Site-specific adjustment in crop man-agement (shifting planting dates andimproved water management, for ex-ample)Governments' plans and interven-tions in anticipation of weather-re-lated calamities such as El Niño.

Possible Adaptation Strategies toClimate Change in Rice Farming

Change varietiesChange cultivation areaDiversifyCrop rotationSystemize irrigationDrainageTilleringAerobic cultivationRice intensification (SRI)EquipmentFarming techniquesMechanizationInputs (fertilizers, pesticides)Alternate wet and dry systemFarm animals

Change planting and harvestingdates (crop management)Tree planting (buffer zone, rooting)forest fire management, promotion ofagro-forestry, adaptive managementwith suitable species and civil-cul-tural practices

Common Indicators Associatedwith Climate Change and RiceProduction

enhanced CO2

higher temperatureWater availabilityClimate variability (extremities) -intense drought, cyclones, ty-phoon, heat wavesSoil fertility and erosionPests and diseasesSea-level riseSoil or water salinity

Socio-economic Indicators thatare Co-related to ClimateChange

decline in yields and production;reduced marginal GDP from agri-culture;fluctuations in world market prices;changes in geographical distribu-tion of trade regimes;increased number of people at riskof hunger and food insecurity


A cold spell is defined as consecutivedays with temperatures below 0°C.4

A month-long cold spell that oc-curred in December 2007 to January 2008was reported in Northern Vietnam, withthe temperatures kept declining to lessthan 13oC.

The cold spell was reported to havedestroyed at least53,000 hectares of rice,mainly the winter-spring rice acreage.5

Haiphong, Hai Duongand Thai Binh reported25,000 hectares of riceaffected. Damagedcrops in Nghe An andThanh Hoa provinces total about 20,000hectares. The upland provinces of BacKan, Lang Son and Son La were badly hitby frost as temperatures dropped to 0oCor lower.

Reported figures showed that at least5,000 hectares of seeds in 16 northernprovinces in Vietnam were devastateddue to the climatic condition.

The consequences

Many farmers suffered lost of livelihood.Along with rice farming, other agriculturalactivities including husbandry, were alsobadly affected. Agricultural engineers had

to get involved to supply farmers with tech-niques to protect the areas under newly-sown rice seeds.

Adaptation Measures

Rice farmers were warned by governmentofficials against sowing rice seeds whentemperatures are down to less than 15oC.

Rice farmers were fur-ther advised to find ef-fective methods to pro-tect their seeds.

In response tothis situation, the Viet-namese Ministry of Ag-riculture and Rural De-velopment called

upon private enterprises to import morerice seeds to offset the shortage caused bycold weather. Farmers were providedwith enough rice seeds, a reported amountof 35,000 tons of rice seeds to replacetheir crops. Budgets for seeds were drawnfrom both central and provincial govern-ment budgets in order to supply districtauthorities with seeds.

Farmers were also introduced to anew line of rice seeds, the P6 rice seeds,which was said to have the capacity tosurvive even the cold and have high pro-ductivity. From 2001 to 2004, P6 seedswere tested for resistance against major

Case 1PROLONGED COLD SPELL

Location: Northern Vietnam3

Optimal temperature for rice:Day temperatures of 28-32oCare standard, with nighttemperatures about 3oC lower.

(Cornell, 2004)

3. Nhan Dan Business, March 21, 20084. Holt and Palutikof (2004)5. February 15, 2008 by tinquehuong


diseases and pests under artificial condi-tions and were found to be lightly resis-tant to rice blast. The seeds, however, aresusceptible to bacterial blight.6

Additionally, farmers who were in-debted to the government also had theirloans frozen and qualified for an emer-gency loan to resume work.

6. VISTA, 2005.7. Chinvanno et al, AIACC AS 2007

The four provinces of Long An, CanTho, Dong Thap, and An Giang are lo-cated in the Mekong River Delta (MRD)in Vietnam. Rice production is a majoragricultural activity in the area with a pro-duction capacity of more than 1 millionton of rice per year. Unfortunately, therice farming communities in these areashave been exposed to a mixture of ad-verse climatic conditions:

Drought during winter-springcropping season.Dry spells in rainy seasonProlonged rainfallsintense sun in dry season thatleads to droughtLong lasting floodExtended flooding areasDeep inundations

Climate risk analysis conducted byChinvanno et al (2007) showed that 27%of the households were highly vulnerable,53% were moderately vulnerable, and20% were least vulnerable to the impactof climate change. The vulnerability fac-

UNPREDICTABLE FLOODS/INUNDATIONS,ERRATIC RAINS, AND DROUGHTS

Locations: Long An, Can Tho, Dong Thap,An Giang / Vietnam7

Case 2

tors were determined by various indica-tors including household economic sta-tus, rice production dependency and cop-ing capacity.

Adaptation Strategies

Given the mixed climatic conditionsand the different degrees of vulnerabili-ties that the rice farming communities wereexposed to, dif-ferent copingstrategies wereadopted toovercome theimpacts.

T a b l e s1(a), (b) and (c)present the vari-ous coping-s t r a t e g i e sadopted by farmers. The economic ca-pacities of the household or the commu-nity are very much relevant in determin-ing the kind of strategies adopted. Theleast vulnerable group, for example, was

Scientists at theInternational RiceResearch Institutebelieve that sub1 gene,as carried by “Swarnasubmergence”, allowsrice to essentially “holdits breath” for up to twoweeks.

(Hamilton, 2008)


able to buy a drying machine and con-tinue agricultural activities during longrainy period, compared to the highly riskygroup that would not be able to carry onwith their agricultural related activities.

One of the strategies recommendedto the farmers was an exposure to a newrice line known as variety “Swarna sub-mergence.” This new flood-tolerant ricecarries sub1a gene that enables the riceplant to withstand submersion in water for

up to 17 days. The newly developed riceis still under field trials and is promised tobe made available to farmers by 2009.8

The announcement of flood-resistantrice as “Offers Relief for World’s PoorestFarmers” was made during the 3rd steer-ing committee meeting of the Irrigated RiceResearch Consortium of the InternationalRice Research Institute (IRRI) in Hanoi,Vietnam 8-9 October, 2007.

Table 1 Coping strategies adopted by the moderate vulnerablegroup faced by climate change related situations in Vietnam.

(a) Low risk group

Adopted from Chinvanno et al (2007)

Experience in coping with climate change to reduce adverse impacts

Normally flooded

Deeply flooded

Long- lasting flood

Drought for long time

Rain for long time

Low vulnerable

group

13 House- holds

pumping, embankment, drainage pumping, drainage canals, dredging,,

fish breeding buy drying machine

short term rice,

appropriate crop

earlier harvest

out of control


(b) Medium risk group

Adopted from Chinvanno et al(2007)

Adopted from Chinvanno et al(2007)

(c) High risk group


Normally flooded

Deeply flooded

Long- lasting flood


Rain for long time

Moderate vulnerable

group

34 households

pumping, embankment, drainage pumping, drainage canals, dredging,,

short term rice,

appropriate crop

2 crops, appropriate

crop and breed

other crops, drought resistant varieties

more solid stem breed

machinery intervention fertilize buy drying

machine

earlier sowing

earlier harvest

no crops, unable to

cope


Normally flooded

Deeply flooded

Long- lasting flood


Rain for long time

Moderate vulnerable

group

34households

pumping, embankment, drainage irrigation, drainage, canal

and river dredging embankment;

strengthening canal system

reducing water

reduce no. of crops/yr.,

change sowing time

earlier harvest, later

sowing

short-term rice, appropriate crop, appropriate production zones

short-term rice

drought resistant varieties

buy drying machine

unable coping

live with flood


UNPREDICTABLE FLOODS,DROUGHTS AND SOIL EROSIONLocation: Lovethom, Cambodia9

Case 3

Lovethom, a small village in Cambodia’snorthern province of Kratie, benefited fromliving on the fertile Mekong river floodplains. The seasonal flooding each yearprovides fish and just enough water forrice cultivation. In the last three years, thevillage has experienced unpredictablefloods (Oxfam America, 2007).

The flood plain normally overflowsfrom July until September. Then the waterstarts to recede when rice planting starts.

However, in thepast three years,heavy rains hadchanged the pat-terns of water re-tention failing torecede by Sep-tember. This con-sequently led toan increase water

level in the field as the cycle of rains startedagain, destroying everything in its path.

Socio-economic impact

Most farmers in the village tilled smallplots of land that are barely enough evento provide for family's consumption. Thecontinuous three-year destructions due toflooding have left farmers with limited rev-enues and capital to proceed with theirfarming activities. Ultimately, many ofthem had no means to buy seeds or other

agricultural inputs to plant for the follow-ing.


In order to survive the impact of the ad-verse climate condition, the rice farmersmade necessary adjustments by:

shifting planting date. Specifically,rice seedlings are planted in No-vember (the last month of the wetseason) after flood water recedes,instead of in September.diversifying jobs: pressing palmleaves to sell as thatch walls androofs as well as selling porridge andbanana leaves.integrating other farming activitiessuch as cattle raising and vegetableplantingimprovingirrigationsystems

The severityof the socio-eco-nomic impact ofthe floods hadforced many familymembers to leavethe community insearch of work inother areas or country. Some went to asfar as Thailand to work as laborers. Some

30 November 2007Unpredictable floodsdestroyed the rice cropsof the Cham people,forcing families tomigrate in a search forsurvival.

Research conducted bythe Climate ChangeOffice of theCambodian Ministry ofEnvironment hasproven that agriculturalproductivity has gonedown during the pastfive years because ofincreased flooding,drought and sea waterintrusions

(Oxfam America, 2007)

9. Oxfam America 2007


found work on a bean plantation in thenorthern region, or press palm leaves tosell as thatch walls and roofs, or sell por-ridge and banana leaves, or sell firewood

collected from surrounding forest.This migration had consequently

caused a severe lack of manpower to workon the farm in the village.

At the eighth Conference of the Parties to the UnitedNations framework Convention on Climate Change(UNFCCC), least developed countries includingCambodia was identified as most vulnerable to climatechange. Fund allocation could be applied for throughsubmission of National Adaptation Plans by relevantcountries (Oxfam America, 2007).

Cambodia identified 39 projects under its NationalAdaptation Program of Action to Climate Change (NAPA)encompassing water resources, agriculture, humanhealth and coastal zone management, through variousprojects including integrated farming such as cattleraising and vegetable planting. This would help to reducedependency on rice farming as the main source ofincome

(Oxfam America, 2007)

PROLONGED DRY SPELL,DROUGHT HIT IN JULY 2007

Locations: Central Luzon, Cagayan Valley,and Ilocos Region, Philippines10

The Philippine climate is generally char-acterized by four climatic types in termsof the relative duration and intensity of thewet and dry periods in different parts ofthe country (Lansigan, 2003).

Type 1 climateWet period from May to Novem-ber, and a dry period from De-cember to April.

Type 2 climateNo clear dry season, and maxi-

mum rainfall is experienced fromNovember to January.

Type 3 climateNo distinct wet and dry seasonsbut is relatively dry from Novem-ber to April.

Type 4 climatePresence of rainfall more or lessevenly distributed throughout theyear

Ilocos Norte was one of the prov-inces worst hit by droughts experienced

10. Rice Today. Mar 2008. IRRI

Case 4


from June 2007 to August 2007 in North-ern Luzon along with Ilocos Sur, La Unionand Pangasinan. Before the dry spell hit,Ilocos Norte had high sufficiency level inthe rice (280%), corn (1,642%), garlic(2,734%) and onion (11,036%).

Autonomous Adaptation Strategiesadopted by the rice farming communityincluded:

Delaying rice planting for fourmonths, as rice seedlings wereshort and small due to lack ofwaterAlternative crops: Planting maize,vegetables, and other dry-seasoncrops instead of rice in late August

As a pro-active measure, the passageof the bill declaring the Province of IlocosNorte under a state of calamity due to theprolonged dry spell was made by the gov-ernor.11 Planned adaptation strategieswith the aid from Department of Agricul-ture included the following:

a) Cloud-seeding

Cloud seeding is a form of weathermodification, commonly used to in-crease precipitation to induce rain, dis-perse fog, suppress hail, or controlwinds. In warm temperatures, clouddroplets are formed around particles ofdust, salt, or soil (cloud condensationnuclei) often present in the atmo-sphere. These cloud droplets formedfrom cool and condensed air made oftiny droplets of water, merge with otherdroplets. The merging becomes heavyand fall to the Earth as rain. It takesmillions of cloud droplets to form asingle raindrop (Malkus and Simpson,1964).

In the case study, cloud-seeding wascarried out in farmlands where irriga-tion was needed most.

b) Shallow tube wells, or water-impound-ing projects

Low cost, hand-drilled shallowtube-wells for ir-rigation have be-come verypopular in manyparts of theworld. Tradi-tionally, farmerslift water fromshallow dug-outs and dug-wells for individually-managed micro scale irrigation in thedry season. Discharge is low and canonly allow small irrigated areas.12 Theprovincial government of the affectedareas in the Philippines was also calledto provide water pumps. Additionally,the government extended assistance inproviding fuel for the operation of thosepumps.

11. Ilocos Times News Updates12. M. Sonou, FAO 1997

IRRI

Rice plants requirebetween 450 and 700mm depending onclimate and length ofgrowing period, forevapotranspiration,compared to cotton(700-1300mm), sugarcane (1500-2500 mm)and maize (500-850mm).

(Doorenbos and Kassam, 1979).


The irrigation systems in the prov-ince were expected to require morethan PhP318 million for rehabilitationin order to reach their highest level ofefficiency. Most of the dams in theprovince had suffered some damagesdue to successive typhoons since2006.

c) Identify alternative crops that aredrought-resistant

The provincial government was also

advised to promote the planting ofmore high-value crops and vegetablesand identify alternative crops that aredrought-resistant. PhP30 million wereallocated for the purpose including thefunds for farm-to-market roads and im-proving irrigation infrastructure. Themitigating efforts called for cooperationacross government officials and may-ors to include the provision of seeds foralternative non-water intensive crops toaffected farmers.

Extreme climate variability conditionssuch as during the occurrence of El Niño

and La Niña eventshave greatly af-fected the spatialand temporal distri-bution of rainfall intropical rice-grow-ing areas such asthe Philippines.The climate relatedevents had beencorrelated with thedecline observedin the rice produc-tion and productiv-ity in the Philip-

pines (PhilRice-BAS 2000).In the village of Sepaka on the island

EXTREME HEAT, DROUGHTS AND WITH ANNUALOCCURRENCE OF FLASH FLOODING

Location: The village of Sepaka, Island of Mindanao,Southern Philippines13

Case 5

of Mindanao, the adverse impact relatedto climate change had led to the presenceof regular pest infestations and unpredict-able weather affected rice production, andhence threatened food security in the vil-lage, and the province.

The occurrence of extreme climatevariability such as El Niño or La Niñaevents characterized by a prolonged dryperiod or heavy rainfall spell coincidingwith the critical stages of crop growth anddevelopment may lead to significantly re-duced crop yields and extensive croplosses.

Once known as the food basket ofthe Philippines, Mindanao has the past fewyears been battling annually with extremeheat, droughts and flash flooding. The ricefarmers could no longer enjoy the three

El Niño is characterizedby major shifts in globalprecipitation patterns,associated with aweakening of the steadywinds that blow fromeast to west above andbelow the equator (tradewinds) and warming ofthe eastern PacificOcean, resulting in theformation of intense rainover the warm water. (Lubomudrov, 1997)

13. Oxfam America 2007


planting seasons a yeardue to unpredictable cli-matic related conditions(Mamid, 2007).

Since the 1997 ElNiño, the village ofSepaka experienced oneof the worst drought pe-riod in 2006 which lastedfor six months. Subse-quently, another climate-linked problem appearedin 2007 many of the ricefields in the village turnedblack and dried up be-cause of an infestation of Rice black bugs(RBB).

The Rice Black Bugs (RBB) orScotinophara coarctata, attack rice stems,infesting the bases of rice stems and drain-ing their saps causing the plants toweaken. This process eventually causesthe stalks to wither (bug burn) and die(Cebu Daily News, 2006).


The concurrent events of droughts on rain-fed lands, resulting in poor harvests dueto black bugs in the past years deleteri-ously affected the people. To reduce thesocio-economic impacts and agriculturallosses due to climate-associated situations,farmers in the village adopted organicfarming methods. An Oxfam project hadallowed farmers to venture into organicfarming techniques to help their villagecope with a changing climate. The train-ing received through Oxfam's Projectshad taught farmers to prepare organic pes-ticides and fertilizers, thus reducing costs

and dependency on syn-thetic or chemical alterna-tives. The organic farmingmethods have enabled thefields to withstand ricepests, intense flash floodsand recurring droughts.Eventually, farmers wereable to grow more andgreater variety of cropssuch as squash, stringbeans and other veg-etables, improve soil fertil-ity, and cut productioncosts by reducing relianceon expensive fertilisers

and pesticides.The government, on the other hand,

ventured into a more commercial-linkedsolution. Through a formalized interven-tion, due to poor rice harvest, the peopleof Sepaka were convinced to converttheir rice fields forthe production ofjatropha (Reyes,2007). Inevitably,it was feared thatthe rush to plant oilpalm or jatrophawould aggravatefood shortages andclimate change(Reyes, 2007). Itwas also feared thatsourcesof liveli-hoods from other activities such as em-ployment as seasonal weeders, gleanersor harvesters or picking and selling snailsand cogon grass would be lost with theintensification of palm oil or jatrophaplantations in the area.

The Indian El Niño -associated Monsoon in1997 turned out to bereasonably good, withcountry wide seasonalrainfall at 102 per centof the long termaverage.Even though themonsoon was delayed bya week, the cumulativerainfall was excess ornormal covering 81 percent of the districts ofthe country. (India Budget 1998)

A complete managementpractices were evolvedfor Rice black bug.Spraying neem seedkernel extract 5% (TNAU, 2003)

Photo by IRRI & University of Queensland


DROUGHT IN 2006Location: Rice-growing provinces of Anhui,

Hunan and Hubei, China14

Case 6

Drought has becomethe single largest factor lim-iting rice production inNorth China and therainfed areas of South/Southeast Asia. In 2006,China suffered one of itsworst droughts in half-a-century. Crops in the rice-growing prov-inces of Anhui, Hunan and Hubei werewiped out as water levels in lakes, riversand reservoirs dropped to historic lows.

In 2004, the areas were planted withabout 4.0 million ha. of japonica rice inNortheast (3.3 m ha) and Northwest (0.7m ha.) China (Zhi-Khang, 2005). Duringthe drought, average lowland rice yieldsdropped from 7.5 tons per ha. to 6.6 tons.


Aerobic rice was introduced and prom-ised to be the variety that significantly usesless water than ordinary lowland rice.

Aerobic rice has been en-gineered by combining thepositive traits of hardy up-land rice with those ofhigh-yielding lowland rice.Aerobic rice represents anew concept of growinghigh-yielding in non-

puddled, aerobic soils under irrigation andhigh external inputs (Bouman et al, 2002).

Aerobic rice needs 50-70 per centless water than lowland rice because ofits longer roots that facilitate water absorp-tion and improve aircirculation. It alsoproduces acceptableyields under floodconditions, if andwhen the floods hit.

Field experi-ments and farmer-par-ticipatory researchhave been simulta-neously carried out inmany part of theworld including in theHuang -Hua i -Ha iplain, northernChina.

Highest recorded aerobic rice yieldswere 4.7-6.6 tons per hectare, comparedwith 8-8.8 tons of lowland rice. The vari-ety Han Dao 502 seemed to be promis-ing because of its relatively high yield

China plants nearly 30million hectares of riceper year, yielding over180 million tons. (New Agriculturist, 2008)

Aerobic rice requires much less water than ordi-nary lowland rice (Credit: IRRI)

14. The New Agriculturist, 2008

Two pilot site villages wereestablished by IRRI in 2001for farmer-participatorytesting, site-specificadaptation and extensionof aerobic rice, one nearBeijing and one at Fengtai(Anhui province).

Though, on average, theyield of aerobic rice was27-35% lower than that offlooded lowland rice, thewater use was 55-66%lower, and waterproductivity 1.6-1.9 timeshigher.


under both aerobic and flooded condi-tions and because of its good qualitycould demand a high market price. Com-pared with lowland rice, water inputs foraerobic rice were more than 50% lower(only 470-650 mm),

Catch-22 in adopting strategiesrelated to weather conditions

Following the event of severe drought in2006, China experienced severe floodsbeginning summer of 2007 (Vision Voice,2007). Areas such as Guangxi, Guizhou,Hunan, Sichuan, Anhui, and Shaanxi, thatwere plagued with droughts in 2006,

were later badly affected by floods. Theimpact assessment in Anhui reported thatprolonged heavy rainfall had literallyturned all land into a lake whereby manyhouses and almost all farmlands were sub-merged. Aerobic rice which requires lesswater is not an appropriate alternativeduring rainy seasons. In this case, a vari-ety that is able to grow submerge in watermight be appropriate. The flood situationsin the affected provinces led to the distri-bution of over 2,100 metric tonnes of ricewith a total of 140,000 beneficiaries (Vi-sion Voice, 2007).

HIGH SALINITY LEVEL OF RAINFED RICE FIELDSLocation: Isaan region, Thailand

(Khon Kaen province)

Case 7

The climate in Khon Kaen Province,Thailand, generally depends on the pat-tern of monsoon each year. Summer nor-mally starts from mid February to the endof May with the annual average highesttemperature of 34.070C; the highest tem-perature in 2000 was recorded at 41.70C.The rainy season starts from May to earlyOctober with the precipitation of 1,683.3mm for 108 raining days in the year 2000.Normally the heavy rain concentrates onAugust and September. Winter normallystarts from December to mid of March withan annual average minimum temperatureof 21.70C; the minimum temperature in2000 was recorded at 12.10C. However,in 2002 it was expected that north east-

ern Thailand would be affected by El Niño.From the total land area of 6.80 mil-

lion rais (about 1.08 million hectares),61.86% were utilized for agricultural pur-poses in 2001. Most of the lands were uti-lized for rice cultivation especially gluti-nous rice for household consumption.Rice cultivation needs a lot of water, dur-ing the rainy season. More than 2.5 mil-lion rais were utilized for the first crop ofnon-glutinous and glutinous rice. For thesecond crop, only 134,046 rai of irrigatedland were feasible for rice cultivation. Forthe first crop, the average yields of non-glutinous and glutinous rice per rai are 448and 436 kg/rai respectively. The reasonfor low yield per area has been attributed


to the nature being rain-fed areas. For the secondcrop, only small-irrigatedareas are normally uti-lized, the average yieldsper rai are as high as 644and 603 kg/rai respec-tively. In 2001, KhonKaen produced1,110,232 ton of paddyfor the first crop and an-other 85,106 ton for thesecond crop. The othermain crops of Khon Kaenare cassava, sugar cane,soybean, maize andground nut.

The Problem

The high salinity level in the soils in Isaanregion has been attributed to natural phe-nomenon such as climate, rock salt de-posit, saline groundwater (Japakasetr andWorkman 1981) as well as by human ac-tivities including wood cutting, water stor-age, and groundwater pumping(Williamson et al., 1989). In NortheastThailand, salt affected areas are oftenfound in rainfed paddy fields. Salt accu-mulation in the region is caused by tran-spiration of saline groundwater (Khoyamaet al., 1993). Salt that causes damage tovegetation is transported from salt sourcessuch as rock salt and brine to the groundsurface due to salt accumulation by leach-ing. This led to the abandonment of manyagricultural fields.

Soil salinity refers to the state of ac-cumulation of soluble salts in the soil. Soilsalinity can be determined by measuring

the electrical conductivityof a solution extracted froma water-saturated soilpaste, generally has an ECemore than 2 dS.m-1 at 25oC(Richards, 1954).

Natural Causes ofSalinity

Salinity may be caused bynatural processes such asrainfall, humidity, evapora-tion rate, topography, dis-charge and recharge areaconditions and groundwa-ter flow systems of the re-gion. Naturally, the devel-opment of saline soil and

saline groundwater is related to the flowof groundwater. Under saturated flowconditions, when the moisture content isat or above field capacity, groundwater isable to move under the influence of grav-ity. In saturated flow systems, excess ofgroundwater builds up in a recharge areato the point where lateral groundwaterflow occurs. As the groundwater flowsbetween particles of rock and soil, it dis-solves and transports soluble salts. Thegroundwater emerges at the soil surfacein a discharge area. When the waterevaporates, the salts are left behind on thesoil surface. Over time, the salts accumu-late in the discharge area, and eventuallythe salt concentration becomes so highthat plant growth is restricted.

In 1993, severe salinity level of soilin Kula Ronghai (Ki) at NakhonRatchasima province, Udon (Ud) atMahasarakam province, and Roi-et (Re-

Thailand considered a 3-mechanism approach in itscrop improvementstrategy that influenceyield in the drought proneareas:

i) yield potential as animportant mechanismfor mild drought(where yield loss is lessthan 50%),

ii) drought escape(appropriatephenology)

iii) drought tolerance traits(leaf water potential,sterility, flower delayand drought responseindex) for more severedrought conditions.

(Jongdee et al, 2005)


saline) at Khon Kaen province were re-corded at 20, 23 and 15 ds/m in rainy sea-son and 100, 42, and 35 ds/m in dry sea-son, respectively.

However, various investigations con-ducted suggested that the salt-affected ar-eas have been expanding mainly due tohuman activities such as deforestation, saltmaking, irrigation and construction of res-ervoirs, canals and roads (Wada et al.,1994). That implies that inadequate man-agement of agricultural land use acceler-ates salt accumulation.

The salinization of rice paddies andwater reservoirs is a very recent develop-ment and is associated with deforestationin the upland soils for producing cashcrops as cassava and kenaf. Subsequentchanges in the hydrologic conditions fol-lowing land clearing and replacement ofdeep rooted trees with shallow rootedcrops (cassava, kenaf, etc.) increased thenatural recharge of aquifers and resultedin saline seepage on lower slopes andvalley floors.

Visual indications of high soil salin-

ity in Northern Thailand include both thepresence of salt- tolerant indicator shrubssuch as Nham Daeng, Nham Phung Dor,Nham Phrom and Nham Pee and salt-tol-erant grass as Sakae and the absence ofproductive plants such as rice and maizethat are unable to tolerate saline condi-tions.

The high soil salinity decreased an-nual crop yields (Yuvaniyama et al., 1996).

Adaptation strategies

Strategies adopted to grow rice on highsoil salinity include:

i) Pumping groundwater for irrigationThe use of groundwater for agricultureis mainly to supplement surface watersupplies. In Thailand, pumped irriga-tion schemes have been implementedby the Department of Energy Develop-ment and Promotion to secure ad-equate irrigation water.

ii) Reforestation ProgramRecognizing the impact of salinity, theThai government has introduced along-term reforestation program, allo-

Table 2. General ranges for plant tolerance to soil salinity. Salinity (ECe, dS.m -1 ) Saline Level Plant response

0 to 2 Non saline Mostly negligible

2 to 4 Slightly saline Growth of sensitive plants may be restricted

4 to 8 Moderate saline Growth of many plants is restricted

8 to 16 High saline Only tolerant plants grow satisfactorily

> 16 Extreme saline Only a few, very tolerant plants grow satisfactorily


THE DRY SEASON AND FOREST FIRELocation: Central Kalimantan, Indonesia15

Case 8

cating approximately 5 million rai fortree planting in the 1992-1996 Devel-opment plan.

iii) Deliberately facilitate water and sol-ute transfer within 2-meter soil depth(Montoroi, 2006). French organiza-tion IRD and Land Development De-partment (LDD) from Thai Ministry ofAgriculture and Cooperatives has car-ried out since three years a local field

experiment (LFE) based on water andsolute transfer monitoring at short-timesteps within two meters soil depth andon the salt-affected soil rehabilitationusing improved cultural practices(Saejiew, 2003).

iv) Water storage

v) Deep-well injection of brine (ACIAR,1992)

The largest land conversion scheme was the Mega RiceProject in Central Kalimantan in 1996. Dubbed as thebrainchild of former President Suharto, the project was anillustration of poor environmental management which ag-gravates climate change.

The Mega Rice Project (MRP) in Central Kalimantan,Indonesia, was implemented in 1996 with the aim of con-verting one million hectares of tropical rain forest on peatlands into paddy field and promoting transmigration. Thecombination of forest destruction, land clearance and anexceptionally severe El-Niño climatic event in 1997 ledto the severest forest and peat-land fires ever known inthis region.

Since 1983, Indonesia has been greatly affected byannual climate variability due to El Niño or Southern Os-cillation events, commonly taking place in the PacificOcean every two to seven years. During a warm El Niño,the arrival of the monsoon rains would be delayed, dis-rupting the planting of the main December-January crop.

In 1997, El-Niño event caused very severe and ab-normal drought lasted for few months in the Kalimantan

Southeast Asia contains70% of the world's totaltropical peatland, mostly inIndonesia and Malaysia.

(Rieley, 2001)

Indonesia is rated as thethird largest CO2 polluterin the world.

Carbon emissions from the1997/98 fires amounted toan estimated 15-40% ofannual global fossil fuelemissions

(Kieft, 2007)

15. Hohan, 2007



that eventually turned disastrous with severe peat fires.Severity and abnormality of drought under El-Niño eventwere found to have strong relationship to the Sea Sur-face Temperature (SST) anomalies.16

Coupled with the drought, the poor managementof the peat lands has also been associated with climatechange because of high level of CO2 emission from de-composition and burning (smoke and haze). With theimplementation of the MRP, thousands of kilometers ofdrainage and irrigation channels were built that causedthe peat to dry up.

The damage in the ecosystem (e.g. soil fertility) as aresult of this activity had cost farmers their livelihoods.Farmers resorted to use fire as an essential low-cost toolfor clearing land and releasing nutrients.

Due to the rampant activities of open-burning onrice fields to clear land and release soil nutrients on theisland, the Indonesian government ultimately had to in-tervene and pass a "No-burning Legislation" to reducehaze and emissions. This legislation had made farmersvulnerable to legal problems where they could be de-tained and fined for setting fire on their farm land, whichalmost all depended on for livelihoods.

The negative results surrounding the project even-tually led to its termination. Unfortunately, the strategyadopted in combating the adverse effect of climatechange led to implementation of the “No-burning Legis-lation”, which backfired on poor farmers.

Between 1997 and 1998, firesraged across Indonesia causingan estimated US$ 4.5 billionin damage. The fires spreadsmoke as far as southernThailand and the Philippines.

(ICRAF, 2003)

The Indonesian EnvironmentalImpact Management Agency(BAPEDAL), the secretariat ofa National Coordinating Teamfor Land and Forest FireControl (TKNPKHL),established an emergencycommand post (POSKO) tocoordinate efforts to controlland and forest fires duringthe extended dry period in1997.

(IFFN, 1998)

Malaysia amended itsEnvironmental Quality Act1974 (EQA) in July 2000 toaddress problems related toopen burning.

16. Putra & Hayasaka, 2007


Recently, the rising ofsea level has been closelyassociated with globalwarming causing thermalexpansion of the oceanwaters and the melting ofland-based ice (the Hima-layan glaciers).

Bangladesh beingsituated in one of theworld's highest precipita-tion areas is prone toflooding due to variousfactors including its lowtopography. In addition, Bangladesh hasthe world's biggest rivers flowing throughit, and experiences the occurrence of cy-clones. Various measurements taken indifferent points in Bangladesh suggestedthat 70% of its land area lies less than 1mabove sea level (GeoBytesGCSE, 2006).

Not surprisingly, a climate changedisaster for Bangladesh could be welldemonstrated by rising sea levels that of-ten caused flooding in most part of thecountry. The flood in 1987 affected 39%of the country and around 30 millionpeople. Loss in rice production was esti-mated around 0.8 million tons. The fol-lowing year, in 1988, 60% of the countrywas affected, along with 45 million peopleand 1.8 million tons in rice production.Between July and September 1998, an-

other disastrous flood hitBangladesh, where waterwas reported to rise to 6meters above mean sealevel due to high dis-charge and tide(GeoBytesGCSE, 2006).

Due to frequentflooding caused by inlandflow of sea water, manyparts of Bangladesh even-tually suffered from highsalinity in the groundwa-ter. Water salinity is de-

fined by its chemical constituents, andTotal Dissolved Solid contents (TDS, mg/l). In natural water, salts are chemical com-pounds comprised of anion such as car-bonates, chlorides, sulfates, and nitrates(primarily in the groundwater), and cationssuch as potassium (K), magnesium (Mg),calcium (Ca), and sodium (Na).


Rice farmers around the coastal area havebegun to suffer from the effects of risingsalinity. The water in their paddy fields hadbecome salty, thus could no longer besuitable for rice cultivation. Due to thischange in the environment, the farmerschanged their agricultural practices. Manyfarmers in the village of Munshiganj, for

Strange events of 2004in Bangladeshexperienced through thetides in the estuaries ofthe Ganges, Brahmaputraand Meghna riversstopped ebbing andflowing. The water leveljust remained at hightide.And in 2005, Bangladeshhad no winter at all. (The Independent, 2007)

GRADUAL INCREASE IN SEA LEVELS, FORCING SALTWATERFROM BAY OF BENGAL INTO LOWLANDLocation: Small Village Of Munshiganj,

Southwestern Bangladesh17

Case 9

17. The Independent UK. 2007


example, who used to harvest rice andvegetables 2-3 times a year, switched toprawn farming to take advantage of thesalty water to continue sustaining theirlivelihoods and incomes.

The increasing concern on the ris-ing level of water salinity and its impacton rice production prompted Bangladeshto embark into developing a new strain ofrice that has the capacity to withstand saltywater. The impact of water salinity on riceproduction in Bangladesh is obvious fromits current yield capacity which is only halfof China. Bangladesh farmers could pro-duce around 8 tons of rice per hectare,compared with 17 tons in China (Huggler,2007).

Bangladesh has continuously soughtfor long term measures for defence againstor coping with the rising sea levels thatoften caused flooding. These measures

include huge series of dykes made ofboulders that stretch along the entire coast.Since 1957, about 7,500km of flood em-bankments have been constructed and yetmany were compromised or damaged inthe 1998 floods. The government alsoconstructed flood protection shelters(large buildings raised above the ground)to shelter both people and animals. Emer-gency flood warning systems and planshas also been put in place to facilitate res-cue and relief services. The governmentbodies also distributed free seeds to farm-ers in order to reduce the impact of foodshortages.

For Bangladesh, where agriculturemakes up 21 per cent of GDP for around147 million people, the rising levels ofsalinity, caused by rising sea level associ-ated with climate change, is a seriousthreat.


ANALYSIS AND CONCLUSIONS

Various strategies were adopted byfarmers, communities, agencies or gov-ernments in the efforts to combat the ad-verse impacts of climatic conditions thataffect rice farming.

Behind these recommendations andimplemented strategies, it is interesting tounderstand the underlying purpose ofstrategies adopted. The various objectivesor goals of the adopted strategies couldwork for the benefits of either one or incombination of the following:

FarmersAgricultural / farming sectorCountry's Economic growth (GDP)Rice sectorEnvironment

In the last case mentioned, for ex-ample, it is obvious that the strategyadopted worked against rice production,as the people abandoned the rice activi-ties and shifted to prawn farming. Thismeans that the world has lost an area forrice production, hence might contributeto shortage of rice supply, domestically orglobally. However, the livelihoods of thefarmers were protected as they have iden-tified another source of income.

The stability of rice production sys-tems in tropical agro-environment de-pends on adaptation strategies and miti-gation measures applied to cope withthese events. As such, it is important toevaluate the effects of climate change onrice crop growth and development. Cropmanagement measures include a widerange of possible strategies. However,more emphasis, as well as research anddevelopment, should be put on sustain-able approaches such as:

A multi-cropping system approachrather than a single crop develop-ment approach.Motivating the farmers to providelife saving irrigation to the cropwherever possible during long dryspells.Improving soil fertility.Emphasis on balanced use of plantnutrients along with the integratedplant management system.Use of bio-fertilizer.Effective control of pests anddiseases by emphasizing the needbased application of pesticides orcomplete management using bio-pesticides.


The impact of climate change onagriculture has generated great concernworldwide. The International Assessmentof Agricultural Science and Technologyfor Development (IAASTD) Report in April2008 clearly provided evidence for theimpact of climate change on farmers. In

More emphasis on the adoption ofnon-monetary inputs like timelysowing, maintaining optimumplant population, timely irrigation,efficient use of organic inputs,plant protection measures andtimely harvesting of crop.

Reason / Problem

Change varieties (High yield variety, Strong stem variety, Disease resistant, Drought tolerant, etc)

Non saline

Change cultivation area Infertility, salinity

Diversify Expand sources of income, soil or water management

Crop rotation To improve soil fertility, to suit climatic conditions (seasonal weather)

Systemize irrigation (water ponds) Improve water management and supply to low - land rice fields.

Drainage Mitigate flooding problems

Aerobic cultivation Drought, poor irrigation

Alternate wet and dry system Increase income potential, take advantage of seasonal weather

Rice intensification (SRI) To reduce production cost, minimize environmental damage, increase productivity.

Farming techniques Increase efficiency, productivity

Equipment or Mechanization Labor-constraint

Inputs (fertilizers, pesticides) To enhance yields

Farm animals Reduce cost of production, organic soil management,

Tree planting (buffer zone, rooting) To mitigate climatic impact, to stabilize soil

Change planting and harvesting dates (crop management)

To reduce socio-economic impacts due to climatic variability, taking advantage of conducive growing conditions.


understanding the sever-ity of CC impacts onfarming communitiesand the various newtechnologies that havebeen recommended, in-cluding “for farmers toadopt these (agricultural)technologies (to mitigateand adapt to climatechange) substantial financial support willbe needed….farmers should be givenmonetary credits for the GHG emissionsreduced...”

Some cases in this report showed thatmany efforts have been geared on themanipulation of rice plants in order to

withstand different climate-associated conditions. It isimportant to note that theIAASTD Report also ad-dressed the possible conse-quences of modern bio-technology and geneti-cally-modified organisms(GMO), whereby “It is still ifand under what conditions

they actually improve yields, as both gainsand declines have been reported. Be-cause new techniques are rapidly beingdeveloped, longer-term assessments ofenvironmental and health risks and ben-efits tends to lag behind discoveries.”

"For hundreds of years,natural selectionpressures such asdrought, submergence,flooding, and nutrientand biotic stresses led toa great diversity in riceecosystems." (FAO, 2004)



Annex 1:SOME FACTS ABOUT RICE18

Asia is responsible for the production and consumptionof more than 90 percent rice in the world. Rice being thestaple diet of half the world's population is typically eatentwo or three times daily.

An average Asian consumes about 150 kg of rice annu-ally. An average European eats around 5 kg.

Rice farming has been traced back to around 5,000 BC.

Asia is home to 250 million rice farms. Most are less than1 hectare.

65 kilos of rice are milled annually for every person onearth.

Millions of the poor spend half to three fourths of theirincomes on rice.

To produce one kilogram of irrigated rice, around 5,000liters of water is required

More than 140,000 varieties of cultivated rice (the grassfamily Oryza sativa) are thought to exist but the exact num-ber remains a mystery.

Three of the world's four most populous nations are rice-based societies: People's Republic of China, India, andIndonesia. Together, they have nearly 2.5 billion peoplealmost half of the world's population.

18. Extracted from Rice Trade B-2-B Marketplace, 2008.


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About the Author

ANNI MITIN is working with the Southeast Asian Council forFood Security and Fair Trade (SEACON) for more than a yearand has been directly involved with EARWG activities sincethen. With backgrounds in Bacteriology (Agriculture and LifeScience) and Medical Sciences, she has spent her early careerin biomedical industry, promoting new technologies in devel-opment strategies with private and government organizations.Her previous engagement and collaborations with a local uni-versity in Malaysia has led to several publications in interna-tional medical journals. Currently, her role in SEACON as aresearcher has led to new areas of interests including agricul-tural production methods and practices, food security, fair trade,WTO issues and farmer's rights.

The author wishes to thank Mr. Cheah Chee Ho of the Federa-tion of Malaysian Consumers Associations in assisting with thecompilation of some cases.

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