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Arizona Climate Change Could Stress Southwest Crops

chris sandler 01/31/2013 @ 10:27am Just a guy who lives in Maine, has friends, has family, and has a good time.

http://www.machinefinder.com/ww/en-US/articles/arizona-climate-change-could-stress-southwest-crops-2221

The $9 billion agriculture industry in Arizona is used to the heat, but, when paired with drought and continued climate change, farmers could be forced to adapt to shifting fertile areas and water distribution faster than expected. This is according to an article from the Arizona Star, which highlights findings from a recent federally commissioned report.

The report shows that a warmer, drier climate in the southwest is projected to accelerate as agricultural water shifts toward growing urban areas and potentially moves crop production northward. The article points to the report’s stress on high-valued specialty crops, such as lettuce, fruits, and nuts, which can be found widely in the Yuma area of Arizona. Climate change could put these farmers on alert for potential change, as the southwest produces more than half of the nation’s high-value specialty crops.

Reagan Waskom, director of the Colorado Water Institute and co-author of the new report's Southwest chapter, says, "Arizona farmers know about heat stress, about heat and drought down there.

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