Agrometeorology in Extreme Events and Natural Disasters

Despite the current technological advancement, agriculture being a vital source of livelihood, was essentially dependent on weather and climate, and is adversely affected by the weather and climate related extreme events. Over the past few decades, extreme events such as droughts, floods, storms, tropical cyclones and forest fires have destroyed economic and social infrastructure and at the same time endangered food security. The agricultural sector is affected through the impact on water resources, damage to crops, rangelands and forests due to incidence of droughts, locust plagues and wilde and fires. Given the current recognition of the importance of preparedness to cope with risks and uncertainties associated with climate extremes, it is important to develop suitable and sustainable strategies to alleviate the impact of natural disasters on crop productivity. Improved forecast accuracy and more focused information on the location, intensity and duration of climate extremes could underpin efforts to implement more effective risk management strategies. It is crucial that governments exercise their sovereign responsibility to prepare and issue early warnings of extreme events in a timely and effective manner to reduce their impact on agricultural production. While natural hazards may not be avoided, integration of risk assessment and early warnings, prevention and mitigation measures including community capacity building and livelihood strategies, can prevent them from becoming disasters. There is also a need to develop locally agrometeorological adaptation strategies to reduce the effect of natural disasters especially in vulnerable regions where food and fibre production is most sensitive and vulnerable to climatic fluctuations. This proposed book based on state of the art knowledge on the science and application of  agricultural meteorology needed to better cope with extreme climate events, should be of interest to all organizations and agencies engaged in planning disaster reduction strategies and management for prevention and mitigation of extreme events. The publication will also be of equal interest to the agrometeorologists of the National Meteorological and Hydrological Services of the countries throughout the globe as well as to the agricultural planners, meteorologists associated with public weather services, forest fire forecasters, and the various departments of governments concerned with agriculture and food production.

Contents:
1. Agrometeorology in Extreme Events and Natural Disasters – An Overview2.  Drought and Desertification3. Irrigation Scheduling to Combat Moisture Deficit in Plants4. Heavy Rains, Floods, Hail and Snow and their Impact on Agriculture5. Tropical Cyclones, Storm Surges, Thunderstorms, Tornadoes and Squalls: Implications for Agriculture6. Agrometeorology Related to Extreme Temperatures, Heat Waves and Frost7. Wind Storms and Sand/Dust Storms and their Effect on Environment and Plants8. Forest- and Bush-Fire and their Impact on the Environment9. Pests and Diseases of Crops and Livestock10. Environmental and Agricultural Implications of Earthquakes, Tsunamis and Volcanic Eruptions11. Community Capacity Building and Livelihood Strategies in Disaster Management and Mitigation of Adverse Impacts on Agricultural Sector12. Role of Agricultural Chemicals on Soil, Water and Air Pollution and their Effects on Plants, Livestock and Aquatic Systems13. Climate Change, Extreme Events and Change in Cryosphere: Implications for Agriculture and Environment14. Impact of Extreme Events and Natural Disasters and Risk Management in Agriculture: Implications for Food Security and Livelihood of the Community

About the Author:
Haripada Das, former Deputy Director General of Meteorology of the India Meteorological Department was in-charge of the Division of Agricultural Meteorology, Pune and in that capacity, has been executing the operational and research projects of the Division. He has actively participated in many Agricultural Meteorology Programmes of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) as member/chairman/leader of several Working Groups and Expert Teams of the WMO Commission for Agricultural Meteorology. With over 35 years of experience in agrometeorological research and applications and teaching in various aspects of Agricultural Meteorology, He has authored over 185 research papers and articles, as well as several other technical publications including WMO Technical Notes and Training materials. He is a recipient of the award of the WMO Commission for Agricultural Meteorology for his outstanding contributions and exceptional service to the commission.