A Memorandum of Understanding has been signed between the US and India to establish a framework of cooperation covering scientific, technical and policy aspects of production, conversion, use, distribution and marketing of biofuels in a sustainable and environmentally friendly way.
Eight specific areas have been identified for collaborative activities.
One aspect will be biofuel feedstock production based on sustainable biomass with active involvement of local communities through non-edible oil seed plantations on wastelands.
The production and development of quality planting materials and high sugar containing varieties of sugarcane, sweet sorghum, sugar and cassava will be emphasised.
And there will also be advanced conversion technologies for first generation biofuels and emerging technologies for second generation bio-fuels, as well as technologies for end-use applications in the sector based on a large scale centralised approach and stationary applications in rural areas.
There will also be projects for electricity production based on a decentralised approach through active community participation, use of by-products of biodiesel production processes, development of test methods, procedures and protocols, standards and certification for different biofuels and end use applications, promotion of technology transfer, assessment of joint policy and business models are other areas of cooperation.
The important role played by government, industry and research entities in both the countries in the area of biofuels development and the benefits expected from their potential collaboration, both the countries decided to cooperate in this field will also be recognised.
Sunday, June 14, 2009
BHEL Commissions Two Solar Power Plants
Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited has commissioned two Grid-Interactive Solar Power Plants of 100 KWp each in Lakshadweep. With this, the company has commissioned a total of eleven Solar Power Plants in the Lakshadweep islands, adding over 1 MW of Solar Power to the power generating capacity of the coral islands in the Arabian Sea.
The plants have been set up at Chetlat and Amini islands of Lakshadweep. BHEL has earlier commissioned Solar Power Plants of various ratings up to 150 KWp at the islands of Agatti, Andrott, Bangaram, Bitra, Kadmat, Kalpeni, Kavaratti, Kiltan and Minicoy.
BHEL’s Solar Power Plants cater to about 15 per cent of the Union Territory’s energy demand and Lakshadweep boasts of having the country’s largest solar power-based island electrification project.
The Lakshadweep islands were wholly powered by DG sets using diesel transported from the mainland (Kochi), reports IndiaInfoline. Transportation of diesel is a cumbersome and costly process, largely depending on sea conditions. Continuous running of the diesel generators was also leading to noise and air pollution.
Besides, contamination of the ground water by the stored diesel was another concern which prompted the Lakshadweep Administration to opt for environment-friendly Solar Power.
The projects will greatly reduce the problems faced in transportation and storage of diesel, besides safeguarding the fragile ecology of the coral islands hitherto threatened by the use of diesel.
The Solar Power Plants supply energy to the main Diesel Generator (DG) grid which in turn powers the entire island including Tourist Cottages, Residential Houses, Cottage Industries etc. The Photovoltaic (PV) modules convert sunlight to electricity directly and using state-of-the-art Power Conditioning Units (PCUs), the DC power is converted to AC and synchronised with the diesel grid.
The SPV modules are manufactured at its ultra-modern manufacturing facility located at Bangalore. Starting from small applications like Solar Powered Street Light, Rural Water Pumping System, Railway Signaling, Offshore Drilling Platforms, BHEL has supplied and commissioned large size Stand-alone as well as Grid Inter-active Solar Power Plants in a number of major cities and remote areas of the country.
The Solar cells and modules manufactured are also exported to various countries like Germany, Australia and Italy. The company’s PV modules are certified to international standards by JRC, Ispra, Italy.
The plants have been set up at Chetlat and Amini islands of Lakshadweep. BHEL has earlier commissioned Solar Power Plants of various ratings up to 150 KWp at the islands of Agatti, Andrott, Bangaram, Bitra, Kadmat, Kalpeni, Kavaratti, Kiltan and Minicoy.
BHEL’s Solar Power Plants cater to about 15 per cent of the Union Territory’s energy demand and Lakshadweep boasts of having the country’s largest solar power-based island electrification project.
The Lakshadweep islands were wholly powered by DG sets using diesel transported from the mainland (Kochi), reports IndiaInfoline. Transportation of diesel is a cumbersome and costly process, largely depending on sea conditions. Continuous running of the diesel generators was also leading to noise and air pollution.
Besides, contamination of the ground water by the stored diesel was another concern which prompted the Lakshadweep Administration to opt for environment-friendly Solar Power.
The projects will greatly reduce the problems faced in transportation and storage of diesel, besides safeguarding the fragile ecology of the coral islands hitherto threatened by the use of diesel.
The Solar Power Plants supply energy to the main Diesel Generator (DG) grid which in turn powers the entire island including Tourist Cottages, Residential Houses, Cottage Industries etc. The Photovoltaic (PV) modules convert sunlight to electricity directly and using state-of-the-art Power Conditioning Units (PCUs), the DC power is converted to AC and synchronised with the diesel grid.
The SPV modules are manufactured at its ultra-modern manufacturing facility located at Bangalore. Starting from small applications like Solar Powered Street Light, Rural Water Pumping System, Railway Signaling, Offshore Drilling Platforms, BHEL has supplied and commissioned large size Stand-alone as well as Grid Inter-active Solar Power Plants in a number of major cities and remote areas of the country.
The Solar cells and modules manufactured are also exported to various countries like Germany, Australia and Italy. The company’s PV modules are certified to international standards by JRC, Ispra, Italy.
Study to Identify How Global Warming Will Influence Hurricanes in the Next Few Decades
An intensive study to examine how global warming will influence hurricanes in the next few decades has been launched by the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) in Boulder, Colorado.
As part of the study, researchers are homing in on the hurricane-prone Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea to assess the likely changes, between now and the middle of the century, in the frequency, intensity, and tracks of these powerful storms.
The goal of the project is to provide information to coastal communities, offshore drilling operations, and other interests that could be affected by changes in hurricanes.
According to Cliff Jacobs, program director in the National Science Foundation (NSF)'s Division of Atmospheric Sciences, which is funding the project, "The outcome of this research will shed light on the relationship between global warming and hurricanes, and will better inform decisions by government and industry."
The project relies on an innovative combination of global climate and regional weather models, run on one of the world's most powerful supercomputers.
"It's clear from the impacts of recent hurricane activity that we urgently need to learn more about how hurricane intensity and behavior may respond to a warming climate," said NCAR scientist Greg Holland, who is leading the project.
"The increasingly dense development along our coastlines and our dependence on oil from the Gulf of Mexico leaves our society dangerously vulnerable to hurricanes," he added.The new study follows two major reports, by the U.S. Climate Change Science Program (CCSP) and Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) that found evidence for a link between global warming and increased hurricane activity.
For the project, the model will examine three decades in detail: 1995-2005, 2020-2030, and 2045-2055. Scientists will use statistical techniques to fill in the gaps between these decades.
A major goal is to examine how several decades of greenhouse-gas buildup could affect regional climate and, in turn, influence hurricanes and other critical weather features.
Scientists will also investigate the impact of the powerful storms on global climate.
"Combining weather and climate models in this way enables more detailed projections of hurricanes in a warming world than any study to date," said Holland.
"These projections will help reduce the uncertainty of current assessments, and they also serve the very important role of providing experience about applying future predictions of changes to high impact weather systems in general," he added.
As part of the study, researchers are homing in on the hurricane-prone Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea to assess the likely changes, between now and the middle of the century, in the frequency, intensity, and tracks of these powerful storms.
The goal of the project is to provide information to coastal communities, offshore drilling operations, and other interests that could be affected by changes in hurricanes.
According to Cliff Jacobs, program director in the National Science Foundation (NSF)'s Division of Atmospheric Sciences, which is funding the project, "The outcome of this research will shed light on the relationship between global warming and hurricanes, and will better inform decisions by government and industry."
The project relies on an innovative combination of global climate and regional weather models, run on one of the world's most powerful supercomputers.
"It's clear from the impacts of recent hurricane activity that we urgently need to learn more about how hurricane intensity and behavior may respond to a warming climate," said NCAR scientist Greg Holland, who is leading the project.
"The increasingly dense development along our coastlines and our dependence on oil from the Gulf of Mexico leaves our society dangerously vulnerable to hurricanes," he added.The new study follows two major reports, by the U.S. Climate Change Science Program (CCSP) and Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) that found evidence for a link between global warming and increased hurricane activity.
For the project, the model will examine three decades in detail: 1995-2005, 2020-2030, and 2045-2055. Scientists will use statistical techniques to fill in the gaps between these decades.
A major goal is to examine how several decades of greenhouse-gas buildup could affect regional climate and, in turn, influence hurricanes and other critical weather features.
Scientists will also investigate the impact of the powerful storms on global climate.
"Combining weather and climate models in this way enables more detailed projections of hurricanes in a warming world than any study to date," said Holland.
"These projections will help reduce the uncertainty of current assessments, and they also serve the very important role of providing experience about applying future predictions of changes to high impact weather systems in general," he added.
India's Highest Court Orders Coke,
Coca Cola and Pepsi sold in India must carry a consumer warning after the nation's Supreme Court said tests of the soft drinks bottled locally turned up high levels of pesticides, a newspaper reported Tuesday.
The court gave the soft-drink giants' Indian subsidiaries a two-week deadline to come up with acceptable language for the warning labels, which will be displayed on the sides of cans and bottles across the country, The Indian Express newspaper said.
Last year, a New Delhi-based activist group, the Center for Science and Environment, claimed that pesticide residue levels in randomly selected Coke and Pepsi bottles were 30 to 36 times higher than norms set by the European Union due to the use of contaminated ground water.
The companies challenged the findings in court and a judge ordered tests.
Later, India's health minister announced the results of the court-ordered tests that showed nine out of 12 soft drinks produced by the Coca-Cola and PepsiCo operators in India did not meet European Union safety standards for pesticide residue, but were considered safe under local standards.
The newspaper reported that both companies pleaded against a court order requiring them to display a breakdown of all their ingredients -- a particularly sensitive issue for Coca-Cola, which has zealously guarded its secret formula, and once pulled its soft drinks from India after a government in the 1970s ordered the company to reveal its recipe.
In statements issued by Coca-Cola India and PepsiCo India, both companies said their products were safe and complied with all statutory requirements.
A statement from Pepsi said, "Our products conform to the highest international standards that ensure consumer safety."
Coca-Cola India said "We follow one quality system across the world," adding that "The treated water used to make our beverages across all our plants in the country already meets the highest international standards, including EU."
The court gave the soft-drink giants' Indian subsidiaries a two-week deadline to come up with acceptable language for the warning labels, which will be displayed on the sides of cans and bottles across the country, The Indian Express newspaper said.
Last year, a New Delhi-based activist group, the Center for Science and Environment, claimed that pesticide residue levels in randomly selected Coke and Pepsi bottles were 30 to 36 times higher than norms set by the European Union due to the use of contaminated ground water.
The companies challenged the findings in court and a judge ordered tests.
Later, India's health minister announced the results of the court-ordered tests that showed nine out of 12 soft drinks produced by the Coca-Cola and PepsiCo operators in India did not meet European Union safety standards for pesticide residue, but were considered safe under local standards.
The newspaper reported that both companies pleaded against a court order requiring them to display a breakdown of all their ingredients -- a particularly sensitive issue for Coca-Cola, which has zealously guarded its secret formula, and once pulled its soft drinks from India after a government in the 1970s ordered the company to reveal its recipe.
In statements issued by Coca-Cola India and PepsiCo India, both companies said their products were safe and complied with all statutory requirements.
A statement from Pepsi said, "Our products conform to the highest international standards that ensure consumer safety."
Coca-Cola India said "We follow one quality system across the world," adding that "The treated water used to make our beverages across all our plants in the country already meets the highest international standards, including EU."
Americans See Watershed Era for Environmental Investing
Americans see a golden age for green investing, according to the results of the second-annual survey on environmental investing released here today by Allianz Global Investors, a leading global investment firm.
Of the investors surveyed, 78% say we are likely to see more policies to promote business investment in new environmental technologies in the first year of the Obama Administration than we did under eight years of the Bush Administration. Further, nearly three-quarters (74%) believe the new Congress will be more supportive of policies to promote business investment in new environmental technologies than the old Congress.
"Barack Obama won this election on a platform of change, and the regulatory changes are likely to be very positive for environmental investing," said Bozena Jankowska, lead portfolio manager of the Allianz RCM Global EcoTrends Fund and head of the RCM Sustainability Research Team. "The type of stimulus President Obama is proposing represents a significant opportunity for investors. More broadly, the tone, intensity and content of the debate in Washington is changing and that’s what is really important."
Conducted for the second year in a row, the poll of 1,264 adults examined investors’ understanding of and attitudes toward the environment from an investor’s point of view. The poll was conducted via the Internet between December 12 and December 19, 2008 by GfK Roper Public Affairs & Media, a division of GfK Custom Research North America. Participants had to be age 25 or older and have primary or shared responsibility for investment decisions in households with financial assets of at least $100,000.
The sample was weighted to match the characteristics of the total online population in terms of gender, age, household asset level and region, according to the U.S. Census. The same methodology was used for the survey conducted December 14-20, 2007, which yielded 1,003 completed interviews.
Hope (and Confidence) Springs Eternal
Even though 2008 was a turbulent year for the broader markets, survey data reveal that investors are still generally optimistic, and they are particularly constructive on the environment. In fact, 72% of survey respondents say the recent decline in stock prices has had no impact on their inclination to invest in environmental stocks and about half (48%) of investors say they are at least somewhat likely to invest in these types of companies within the next year.
"The need for pollution control, clean water and energy efficiency is not going away. Investors perceive there is real opportunity here and they want to capitalize on it," said Brian Gaffney, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Allianz Global Investors Distributors.
According to the survey, investors continue to view the environmental technology sector as a "buy," with 64% classifying the environment as the most desirable investment opportunity of the 10 categories surveyed. Further, there was a 30% increase from 2007 to 2008 in the number of investors who say they have already made investments in companies that are capitalizing on environmental trends (17% in 2007 versus 22% in 2008).
"Investors’ bright outlook on the environmental technology sector is telling. This is perceived as a long-term opportunity," said Gaffney. "Investors understand that robust demand for innovation and solutions will fuel growth, and consequently profits, for years to come."
Beyond the environment, investors are generally optimistic. Fifty-two percent say the Dow Jones Industrial Average will be higher a year from now than it is today.
Here Today, Here Tomorrow
Investors perceive that environmental issues will be long-lasting and thus present a large and enduring investment opportunity. Better than nine in 10 survey respondents (91%) believe that finding solutions to environmental problems will be a major issue for years to come, and nearly seven in 10 (69%) say it is important to look at investments in companies that are capitalizing on addressing environmental problems.
Addressing and solving these problems has become a top-tier concern of policymakers and opinion-makers. Social commentators and authors such as Thomas Friedman and Daniel Esty have opined there is tremendous opportunity to create economic value by innovating in the environmental space, and survey respondents agree. The survey found that nearly eight in 10 investors (78%) say environmental technology has the potential to be the next great American industry.
"Government investment in the environment and in alternative energy in particular, will be an important engine for economic renewal in the Obama administration," Jankowska said. "During his inaugural address, President Obama said ’We will harness the sun and the winds and the soil to fuel our cars and run our factories.’ This is a positive for the U.S. economy and job creation, and for the advancement of the environmental technology sector globally.
"At the same time, accelerating industrialization in emerging markets will continue to spur the need for environmental technologies. That has not changed despite the broader economic slowdown," Jankowska said. "We believe it’s possible that we are in the early stages of a long-term secular up-cycle for environment-related companies."
Even with current oil and gas prices relatively low, there is evidence that investors are now taking a longer view when it comes to the environment. Nearly all investors (97%) say that exploring alternative fuel sources for the future will remain important even if gas prices come down.
American investors see room for progress, and perhaps catch-up, at home. Fifty-eight percent say Europe is ahead of the United States when it comes to addressing environmental problems.
Seeking Help to Go Green
According to the survey, investors are eager to learn more about environmental technology and the related investing opportunities, and they are looking to financial advisors for help. Better than two out of three (68%) of all survey respondents agree they would need to consult a financial advisor for help investing in the environment.
Among those already investing with an investment professional, 78% say that even though the market has been performing poorly, they are still looking to their financial advisor to bring them interesting investment opportunities. However, 85% of those said their advisor had yet to recommend an environment-related investing opportunity. The securities of any single industry such as environmental securities tend to be more volatile than the stock market as a whole, and smaller companies may have limited operating histories and be at a more vulnerable stage of growth.
"This is a rapid growing and rapid-changing sector of the market, so investors are looking for help to smartly and profitably participate," Gaffney said. "Innovation in environmental technology is occurring at an increasing pace and on a global scale, so evaluating the opportunities may be difficult for individual investors. Financial advisors can help investors navigate the space and in turn, professionally managed products offer advisors access to experience, technical expertise and diversification in this complex sector."
Of the investors surveyed, 78% say we are likely to see more policies to promote business investment in new environmental technologies in the first year of the Obama Administration than we did under eight years of the Bush Administration. Further, nearly three-quarters (74%) believe the new Congress will be more supportive of policies to promote business investment in new environmental technologies than the old Congress.
"Barack Obama won this election on a platform of change, and the regulatory changes are likely to be very positive for environmental investing," said Bozena Jankowska, lead portfolio manager of the Allianz RCM Global EcoTrends Fund and head of the RCM Sustainability Research Team. "The type of stimulus President Obama is proposing represents a significant opportunity for investors. More broadly, the tone, intensity and content of the debate in Washington is changing and that’s what is really important."
Conducted for the second year in a row, the poll of 1,264 adults examined investors’ understanding of and attitudes toward the environment from an investor’s point of view. The poll was conducted via the Internet between December 12 and December 19, 2008 by GfK Roper Public Affairs & Media, a division of GfK Custom Research North America. Participants had to be age 25 or older and have primary or shared responsibility for investment decisions in households with financial assets of at least $100,000.
The sample was weighted to match the characteristics of the total online population in terms of gender, age, household asset level and region, according to the U.S. Census. The same methodology was used for the survey conducted December 14-20, 2007, which yielded 1,003 completed interviews.
Hope (and Confidence) Springs Eternal
Even though 2008 was a turbulent year for the broader markets, survey data reveal that investors are still generally optimistic, and they are particularly constructive on the environment. In fact, 72% of survey respondents say the recent decline in stock prices has had no impact on their inclination to invest in environmental stocks and about half (48%) of investors say they are at least somewhat likely to invest in these types of companies within the next year.
"The need for pollution control, clean water and energy efficiency is not going away. Investors perceive there is real opportunity here and they want to capitalize on it," said Brian Gaffney, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Allianz Global Investors Distributors.
According to the survey, investors continue to view the environmental technology sector as a "buy," with 64% classifying the environment as the most desirable investment opportunity of the 10 categories surveyed. Further, there was a 30% increase from 2007 to 2008 in the number of investors who say they have already made investments in companies that are capitalizing on environmental trends (17% in 2007 versus 22% in 2008).
"Investors’ bright outlook on the environmental technology sector is telling. This is perceived as a long-term opportunity," said Gaffney. "Investors understand that robust demand for innovation and solutions will fuel growth, and consequently profits, for years to come."
Beyond the environment, investors are generally optimistic. Fifty-two percent say the Dow Jones Industrial Average will be higher a year from now than it is today.
Here Today, Here Tomorrow
Investors perceive that environmental issues will be long-lasting and thus present a large and enduring investment opportunity. Better than nine in 10 survey respondents (91%) believe that finding solutions to environmental problems will be a major issue for years to come, and nearly seven in 10 (69%) say it is important to look at investments in companies that are capitalizing on addressing environmental problems.
Addressing and solving these problems has become a top-tier concern of policymakers and opinion-makers. Social commentators and authors such as Thomas Friedman and Daniel Esty have opined there is tremendous opportunity to create economic value by innovating in the environmental space, and survey respondents agree. The survey found that nearly eight in 10 investors (78%) say environmental technology has the potential to be the next great American industry.
"Government investment in the environment and in alternative energy in particular, will be an important engine for economic renewal in the Obama administration," Jankowska said. "During his inaugural address, President Obama said ’We will harness the sun and the winds and the soil to fuel our cars and run our factories.’ This is a positive for the U.S. economy and job creation, and for the advancement of the environmental technology sector globally.
"At the same time, accelerating industrialization in emerging markets will continue to spur the need for environmental technologies. That has not changed despite the broader economic slowdown," Jankowska said. "We believe it’s possible that we are in the early stages of a long-term secular up-cycle for environment-related companies."
Even with current oil and gas prices relatively low, there is evidence that investors are now taking a longer view when it comes to the environment. Nearly all investors (97%) say that exploring alternative fuel sources for the future will remain important even if gas prices come down.
American investors see room for progress, and perhaps catch-up, at home. Fifty-eight percent say Europe is ahead of the United States when it comes to addressing environmental problems.
Seeking Help to Go Green
According to the survey, investors are eager to learn more about environmental technology and the related investing opportunities, and they are looking to financial advisors for help. Better than two out of three (68%) of all survey respondents agree they would need to consult a financial advisor for help investing in the environment.
Among those already investing with an investment professional, 78% say that even though the market has been performing poorly, they are still looking to their financial advisor to bring them interesting investment opportunities. However, 85% of those said their advisor had yet to recommend an environment-related investing opportunity. The securities of any single industry such as environmental securities tend to be more volatile than the stock market as a whole, and smaller companies may have limited operating histories and be at a more vulnerable stage of growth.
"This is a rapid growing and rapid-changing sector of the market, so investors are looking for help to smartly and profitably participate," Gaffney said. "Innovation in environmental technology is occurring at an increasing pace and on a global scale, so evaluating the opportunities may be difficult for individual investors. Financial advisors can help investors navigate the space and in turn, professionally managed products offer advisors access to experience, technical expertise and diversification in this complex sector."
Food of the Future to Be More Diverse?
From the perspective of the plate, the foods we'll eat in the future will likely look and taste a lot like what we eat today. But take a closer peek, and tomorrow's dinner becomes very different indeed.
Agricultural scientists shaping the future of food say that, as global waming alters patterns of temperature, rainfall, and carbon dioxide concentrations in the air, farms must evolve.
Global warming will affect agriculture in a variety of ways: Some regions and farms will get a boost; others will suffer.
To cope with changing growing conditions, farmers will need to reverse decades of crop homogenization and diversify plant strains, agriculture scientists say.
(More on sustainable agriculture.)
Stephen Jones, a plant geneticist and wheat breeder at Washington State University in Pullman, notes that since the mid-20th century, farming has undergone radical homogenization.
"It's not just about monoculture of farms, where one farm grows only one crop, it's also monoculture within those crops and within fields," he said.
Jones notes, for example, that just three varieties of wheat comprise 60 to 70 percent of all wheat grown in the Pacific Northwest, a situation he says is similar with other crops in other regions.
While homogenization has made it easier to grow huge amounts of food on ever larger plots of land, adapting to global warming-induced changes becomes more difficult, particularly if those changes vary from farm to farm and plant to plant.
"There has to be some variation available for the environment to work on. If not, there will be big trouble," he said.
Jones and other researchers say global warming could suppress crop yields, increasing food costs in Western countries and worsening food shortages in many developing areas.
Natural Selection
Agricultural scientists say there are a variety of possible solutions to avoid low crop yields or failures.
Lewis Ziska, a USDA plant physiologist based in Beltsville, Maryland, is in the early stages of creating more resilient varieties of food crops by breeding them with certain weeds.
"Many weeds seem to do better, in general, under a wide range of environments," he said. "Can we take these genes and exploit these abilities by crossing the weeds with cultivated lines? Absolutely."
Ziska notes, for example, that domesticated rice can't produce seed if the temperature creeps above about 90° Fahrenheit (32° Celsius) when the plant is trying to fertilize.
Some weeds related to rice avoid the problem, however, by undergoing fertilization in the early morning or at night, when temperatures are generally cooler. That trait could be passed to the domesticated rice, Ziska says.
Scientists are also looking to breed modern crops with ancestral plant lines.
Global warming forecasts predict higher concentrations of atmospheric carbon dioxide. Ziska has found that under such conditions an early 20th-century strain of wheat actually performs better than a common modern strain.
Jones, of Washington State University, is working on this, as well. His team made test plots of every strain of wheat grown in the Pacific Northwest since the 1850s, looking for traits that could be useful under global warming conditions.
The plant geneticist said he is especially interested in characteristics that haven't been selected for since modern farmers started relying heavily on herbicides, pesticides, and fertilizers—such as the ability to compete with weeds or grow well in poor soil.
Plants with those traits could help farmers reduce the need for chemical inputs and lower their carbon footprint.
Genetic Modification
In a changing climate, farmers will need to experiment with many plant varieties to find the mix that works best on their farms, Jones says.
"Nature does a better job of selecting the plants that work than we do," Jones said.
Other crop scientists say there are situations where nature could benefit from a helping hand.
L. Curtis Hannah, a plant molecular biology researcher at the University of Florida in Gainesville, is using modern gene-transfer techniques to engineer strains of corn that could help farmers in tropical areas.
Global warming may bring relatively fast temperature increases such areas.
Focusing on the naturally occurring genes in corn that produce an enzyme called AGPases, Hannah has been able to produce lab-modified corn that thrives at high temperatures.
"When the temperature is above 90 [32° Celsius] during the early stages of seed development, we've seen increases in the yield as high as 68 percent," Hannah said.
While environmentalists generally oppose the introduction of genetically engineered organisms as too risky, Hannah and other crop scientists say such techniques aren't inherently dangerous and can be effective tools—used alongside traditional breeding—to adapt crops to global warming.
The USDA's Ziska said, "It's not a simple good vs. evil scenario."
Agricultural scientists shaping the future of food say that, as global waming alters patterns of temperature, rainfall, and carbon dioxide concentrations in the air, farms must evolve.
Global warming will affect agriculture in a variety of ways: Some regions and farms will get a boost; others will suffer.
To cope with changing growing conditions, farmers will need to reverse decades of crop homogenization and diversify plant strains, agriculture scientists say.
(More on sustainable agriculture.)
Stephen Jones, a plant geneticist and wheat breeder at Washington State University in Pullman, notes that since the mid-20th century, farming has undergone radical homogenization.
"It's not just about monoculture of farms, where one farm grows only one crop, it's also monoculture within those crops and within fields," he said.
Jones notes, for example, that just three varieties of wheat comprise 60 to 70 percent of all wheat grown in the Pacific Northwest, a situation he says is similar with other crops in other regions.
While homogenization has made it easier to grow huge amounts of food on ever larger plots of land, adapting to global warming-induced changes becomes more difficult, particularly if those changes vary from farm to farm and plant to plant.
"There has to be some variation available for the environment to work on. If not, there will be big trouble," he said.
Jones and other researchers say global warming could suppress crop yields, increasing food costs in Western countries and worsening food shortages in many developing areas.
Natural Selection
Agricultural scientists say there are a variety of possible solutions to avoid low crop yields or failures.
Lewis Ziska, a USDA plant physiologist based in Beltsville, Maryland, is in the early stages of creating more resilient varieties of food crops by breeding them with certain weeds.
"Many weeds seem to do better, in general, under a wide range of environments," he said. "Can we take these genes and exploit these abilities by crossing the weeds with cultivated lines? Absolutely."
Ziska notes, for example, that domesticated rice can't produce seed if the temperature creeps above about 90° Fahrenheit (32° Celsius) when the plant is trying to fertilize.
Some weeds related to rice avoid the problem, however, by undergoing fertilization in the early morning or at night, when temperatures are generally cooler. That trait could be passed to the domesticated rice, Ziska says.
Scientists are also looking to breed modern crops with ancestral plant lines.
Global warming forecasts predict higher concentrations of atmospheric carbon dioxide. Ziska has found that under such conditions an early 20th-century strain of wheat actually performs better than a common modern strain.
Jones, of Washington State University, is working on this, as well. His team made test plots of every strain of wheat grown in the Pacific Northwest since the 1850s, looking for traits that could be useful under global warming conditions.
The plant geneticist said he is especially interested in characteristics that haven't been selected for since modern farmers started relying heavily on herbicides, pesticides, and fertilizers—such as the ability to compete with weeds or grow well in poor soil.
Plants with those traits could help farmers reduce the need for chemical inputs and lower their carbon footprint.
Genetic Modification
In a changing climate, farmers will need to experiment with many plant varieties to find the mix that works best on their farms, Jones says.
"Nature does a better job of selecting the plants that work than we do," Jones said.
Other crop scientists say there are situations where nature could benefit from a helping hand.
L. Curtis Hannah, a plant molecular biology researcher at the University of Florida in Gainesville, is using modern gene-transfer techniques to engineer strains of corn that could help farmers in tropical areas.
Global warming may bring relatively fast temperature increases such areas.
Focusing on the naturally occurring genes in corn that produce an enzyme called AGPases, Hannah has been able to produce lab-modified corn that thrives at high temperatures.
"When the temperature is above 90 [32° Celsius] during the early stages of seed development, we've seen increases in the yield as high as 68 percent," Hannah said.
While environmentalists generally oppose the introduction of genetically engineered organisms as too risky, Hannah and other crop scientists say such techniques aren't inherently dangerous and can be effective tools—used alongside traditional breeding—to adapt crops to global warming.
The USDA's Ziska said, "It's not a simple good vs. evil scenario."
EPA to rebuild uranium-polluted Navajo homes
The federal government plans to spend up to $3 million a year to demolish and rebuild uranium-contaminated structures across the Navajo Nation, where Cold War-era mining of the radioactive substance left a legacy of disease and death.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and its Navajo counterpart are focusing on homes, sheds and other buildings within a half-mile to a mile from a significant mine or waste pile. They plan to assess 500 structures over five years and rebuild those that are too badly contaminated.
"These families, with the resources they have, they would not be able to put up a new home for themselves," said Lillie Lane, a spokeswoman for the Navajo Nation Environmental Protection Agency. "We don't know how radiation in the home affected these families, but in the end people will be living in safe homes."
Between the 1940s and the 1980s, millions of tons of uranium ore were mined from the 27,000 square-mile reservation that spans Arizona, New Mexico and Utah. Many Navajos, unaware of the dangers of contamination, built their homes with chunks of uranium ore and mill tailings.
The U.S. EPA estimates it will cost $250,000 to demolish each structure, haul away the debris and rebuild. The residents of contaminated homes will not be charged for the rebuilding.
"If we find more homes that are contaminated, we certainly will work to find the resources to address them," said Clancy Tenley, associate director for tribal programs at the EPA in San Francisco.
The effort is part of a five-year plan that expires in 2012 in which a number of federal agencies joined together to address uranium contamination and its effects on the Navajo people. Navajos who toiled in the mines and their dependents have suffered or died from cancer, lung and kidney disease, and other health problems caused by exposure to low levels of radiation over time.
"There is growing confidence that each agency is stepping up to its responsibility and doing more," said Stephen Etsitty, director of the Navajo EPA.
Contamination still an issue
So far, the U.S. EPA has assessed 117 structures and demolished 27 of them. Thirteen have been or will be rebuilt, and the owners of the others received financial settlements.
Lane has done much of the outreach work, traveling to homes across the reservation to advise families of the EPA's efforts and securing agreements to allow officials to assess structures they believe are contaminated. She said most families are cooperative, though some have rejected the assessment without reason.
Crews measure the background levels of radiation against levels in the structure. If the levels are high, families are asked to move away from the property while it is demolished and rebuilt. Arrangements are made for them to stay in hotels and for their livestock and crops to be cared for if needed, Etsitty said.
With more than 500 abandoned uranium mines across the vast reservation, EPA officials acknowledge that the issue of uranium contamination is bigger than assessing and rebuilding structures. "We might have taken care of a good piece of the problem," Lane said, "(but) that's just a little part."
Navajo EPA officials worry about recontamination when it rains and contaminated soils are carried toward homes or into the drinking water supply. The caps that cover some former mining sites are eroding, and Etsitty said "we run the risk of the exposure happening again."
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Tenley said that President Barack Obama is seeking $7.8 million in the 2010 federal budget to work on structures and abandoned mines on the Navajo reservation.
The project is stretching the staff at Navajo EPA thin and has forced other projects to be put on the back burner, Etsitty said. For every three U.S. EPA officials who go out in the field, two Navajo staffers must accompany them, partly to serve as interpreters.
The U.S. EPA has taken notice of the Navajo EPA's efforts and is honoring the agency in the tribal capital of Window Rock on Tuesday
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and its Navajo counterpart are focusing on homes, sheds and other buildings within a half-mile to a mile from a significant mine or waste pile. They plan to assess 500 structures over five years and rebuild those that are too badly contaminated.
"These families, with the resources they have, they would not be able to put up a new home for themselves," said Lillie Lane, a spokeswoman for the Navajo Nation Environmental Protection Agency. "We don't know how radiation in the home affected these families, but in the end people will be living in safe homes."
Between the 1940s and the 1980s, millions of tons of uranium ore were mined from the 27,000 square-mile reservation that spans Arizona, New Mexico and Utah. Many Navajos, unaware of the dangers of contamination, built their homes with chunks of uranium ore and mill tailings.
The U.S. EPA estimates it will cost $250,000 to demolish each structure, haul away the debris and rebuild. The residents of contaminated homes will not be charged for the rebuilding.
"If we find more homes that are contaminated, we certainly will work to find the resources to address them," said Clancy Tenley, associate director for tribal programs at the EPA in San Francisco.
The effort is part of a five-year plan that expires in 2012 in which a number of federal agencies joined together to address uranium contamination and its effects on the Navajo people. Navajos who toiled in the mines and their dependents have suffered or died from cancer, lung and kidney disease, and other health problems caused by exposure to low levels of radiation over time.
"There is growing confidence that each agency is stepping up to its responsibility and doing more," said Stephen Etsitty, director of the Navajo EPA.
Contamination still an issue
So far, the U.S. EPA has assessed 117 structures and demolished 27 of them. Thirteen have been or will be rebuilt, and the owners of the others received financial settlements.
Lane has done much of the outreach work, traveling to homes across the reservation to advise families of the EPA's efforts and securing agreements to allow officials to assess structures they believe are contaminated. She said most families are cooperative, though some have rejected the assessment without reason.
Crews measure the background levels of radiation against levels in the structure. If the levels are high, families are asked to move away from the property while it is demolished and rebuilt. Arrangements are made for them to stay in hotels and for their livestock and crops to be cared for if needed, Etsitty said.
With more than 500 abandoned uranium mines across the vast reservation, EPA officials acknowledge that the issue of uranium contamination is bigger than assessing and rebuilding structures. "We might have taken care of a good piece of the problem," Lane said, "(but) that's just a little part."
Navajo EPA officials worry about recontamination when it rains and contaminated soils are carried toward homes or into the drinking water supply. The caps that cover some former mining sites are eroding, and Etsitty said "we run the risk of the exposure happening again."
Click for related content
Contaminants lurk in many ‘natural’ products
Obama keeping coal ash locations secret
Nuclear site stung by radioactive wasp nests
Tenley said that President Barack Obama is seeking $7.8 million in the 2010 federal budget to work on structures and abandoned mines on the Navajo reservation.
The project is stretching the staff at Navajo EPA thin and has forced other projects to be put on the back burner, Etsitty said. For every three U.S. EPA officials who go out in the field, two Navajo staffers must accompany them, partly to serve as interpreters.
The U.S. EPA has taken notice of the Navajo EPA's efforts and is honoring the agency in the tribal capital of Window Rock on Tuesday
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