Effect of anthropogenic aerosols on wheat production in the eastern Indo Gangetic Plain
Abstract
The Indo Gangetic Plain (IGP) which is a food basket of South Asia is also considered as a hot spot of air pollution due to persistent and high emission of anthropogenic aerosols. High level of aerosols in the IGP has not only affected the health of the people but also affected the health of the natural system and climate of the region. Effect of aerosols on crop production of IGP is an emerging area of interest of policymakers and scientific community due to its possible effect on the food security and livelihood of the millions of people in the region. To investigate the effect of anthropogenic aerosols on wheat production in the eastern IGP, we used a calibrated Agricultural Production System Simulator (APSIM) model at the Sustainable Resilient Farming Systems Intensifications (SRFSI) project nodes in Bangladesh, India and Nepal component of eastern IGP during 2015-2017. The effects of anthropogenic aerosols on wheat production were examined by running the APSIM model in three conditions: firstly, at the condition with anthropogenic aerosols by using the observed meteorological data, secondly, at the condition without anthropogenic aerosols by considering only radiative effect of anthropogenic aerosols and thirdly, at the condition without anthropogenic aerosols by considering the radiation as well as temperature effect of anthropogenic aerosols. The study revealed that in average the anthropogenic aerosols have reduced the wheat grain yield, biomass yield, and crop evapotranspiration by 11.2-13.5%, 21.2-22%, and 13.5-15% respectively during 2015-2017 at the SRSFI nodes of eastern IGP. The study also showed the reduction of more than 3.2 kg per capita per annum of wheat production in the eastern IGP due to anthropogenic aerosols indicating a substantial effect on the food security in the region. Moreover, the loss of wheat grain yield due to anthropogenic aerosols in the eastern IGP is estimated to be more than 300 million USD per annum during the study period indicating the significant effect of anthropogenic aerosols in wheat production in eastern IGP.
- Publication:
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AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts
- Pub Date:
- December 2019
- Bibcode:
- 2019AGUFM.A23C..04S
- Keywords:
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- 0365 Troposphere: composition and chemistry;
- ATMOSPHERIC COMPOSITION AND STRUCTURE;
- 0368 Troposphere: constituent transport and chemistry;
- ATMOSPHERIC COMPOSITION AND STRUCTURE;
- 3355 Regional modeling;
- ATMOSPHERIC PROCESSES;
- 0230 Impacts of climate change: human health;
- GEOHEALTH