Study finds Thai farms need help to weather climate change

Bangkok Post: Proper and timely intervention, including efficient water management, is needed to help ease the impact of climate change on the farming sector, a recent study says. The study by the international aid agency Oxfam shows that farmers in areas where up-to-date on-farm facilities are in place can deal with the negative impact better than those lacking such aids.

The agency last year launched a pilot project to help 57 farming families in Yasothon province to cope with unusually severe drought and floods by putting in place proper irrigation systems and promoting multi-cropping. Farmers in the province have seen a drop in rice production in recent years which the agency believes is associated with climate change, said Supaporn Anuchiracheeva, Oxfam project coordinator. After the last harvest it was found the crop yields of the assisted farmers were up an average of 27% on last year. she said. Around 512 farming families without irrigation support saw an average reduction of 40% in rice output.

"The project's outcome indicates that it is vital to offer support to farmers to deal with the effects of climate change," Ms Supaporn said. "The state should take this concern seriously." The study also reflects the need to reach out to other larger farming regions suffering from climate change. "There are many more farmers in need of such assistance in other vulnerable areas," she said….

Ban Dongphayom Rice Farm (January 3 2001).jRice farm in Ban Dongphayom, Phitsanulok, Thailand, shot by Kborland, Wikimedia Commons, under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.2