Climate Change Adaptation: Technology and Policy options for Tamil Nadu, India

Transcription

1 Cimate Change Adaptation: Technoogy and Poicy options for Tami Nadu, India CimaAdapt POLICY MANUAL Apri 2017 Project Partners Project Funded by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Norway / the Roya Norwegian Embassy, New Dehi

2 1. Introduction 1.1 Overview of Agricuture in Tami Nadu Tami Nadu State in India has historicay been an agrarian state and it is a major rice producing State of the country. It is divided into seven zones based on the agro-cimatic features and accordingy the type of crops grown in each zone differs. The Gross Cropped Area in Tami Nadu is around 5.14 miion hectares of which the Gross Irrigated Area is 3.0 miion hectares (58%) (Tami Nadu Economic Appraisa, 2014).According to officia estimates of the Panning Commission, Government of India the incidence of poverty in Tami Nadu is per cent (20.55 % in rura areas). Paddy is the major crop grown in a districts with a share of 44% of the tota cropped area foowed by groundnut and puses each grown at 15% of the cropped area. The tota cropped area has decreased over years due to erratic monsoon patterns, decrease in water and abour avaiabiity and urbanization, which has diverted more farmand to non-agricutura purposes and aso the farm abour from agricuture. About 85% of the farmers beong to sma and margina category and their operationa hodings account for 56% of the tota area. Of the severa factors, cimate variabiity and more frequent extreme weather events isseriousy affecting agricuture production. Sma hoders are highy vunerabe to cimate change due to oss in production and farm income. Irrigated ecosystems are equay affected, simiar to rain-fed systems due to the issues reated to improper water harvesting, storage and distribution. Hence, managing water more efficienty in the future wi be quite reevant for sustaining agricuture production. Using the cimate predictions, and resuts from the CimaAdapt project fied studies and modeing scenarios, suitabe interventions aresuggested in this manua particuary to address the negative impacts of cimate change on agricuture. This poicy manua briefy provides cimate change scenarios and their impacts in the state, the current interventions taken up by the state and the CimaAdapt project derived outputs for incorporation in the state action pan on cimate change to strengthen its initiatives further Impact of cimate change on crop yied, area, production and income in Tami Nadu The cimate of Tami Nadu is expectedto change in the future timescae. Predictions from cimate modes (GCMs and RCMs) indicate that temperatures are expected to increase by 0.60C during 2020 and by 1.90C by 2050 with high confidence eve (Geethaakshmi et a., 2011; Bhuvaneswari et a., 2013). Rainfa changes are uncertain and are expected to increase by 5 to 10 % during 2050 but not m u c h c h a n g e e x p e c t e d u n t i (SonaiMcdermid et a, 2016). However, frequency of extreme events such as droughts and foods are expected to increase due to improper distribution of rainfa as we as unseasona rains. The dynamic crop simuation modeing outputs show that the impact of cimate change wi be more towards 2050 compared to Sugarcane crop in the state wi be more sensitive to cimate change compared to paddy and groundnut crops. Average yied reductions wi be ranging from 3.5% in paddy to 13.4% in sugarcane by 2020 and it wi be 4.5% and 9.4% in 2050 respectivey (Tabe 1). The margina effects of cimate variabes on net revenue wi have negative effect. Most of the districts in Tami Nadu, except Nigiris (which is a hiy district) have negative effect on the net revenue. This expains that higher the change in cimate variabe, ower wi be the net revenue. For exampe, Dharmapuri district farmers wi experience a oss of INR 1,740 for one-degree increase in minimum temperature and Trichy, Cuddaore and Perambaur districts farmers wi suffer a oss of 79%, 34% and 33% respectivey in net 32

3 Tabe 1. Cimate change impact on yied, area and production of major crops in Tami Nadu Production (hundred thousand tonnes) Existing 2020 % Change 2050 % Change Paddy Sugarcane Groundnut Area (Lac Hectare) Existing 2020 % Change 2050 % Change Paddy Sugarcane Groundnut Yied : paddy and groundnut (Kg/ha); sugarcane (t / ha) Existing 2020 % Change 2050 % Change Paddy Sugarcane Groundnut Source: Paanisami et a revenue per one degree centigrade increase in maximum temperature. 2. Interventions by CimaAdapt programme in cana irrigation systems The CimaAdapt program tested various cimate change adaptation strategies in the two basins viz. Kaingarayan cana basin at Erode district (KB) and Ponnaniar reservoir basin (PB) at Thiruchirapai district, Tami Nadu, India from with the participation of farmers and other reevant stakehoders. Kaingarayan cana is of 92 kiometres in ength ying at 534 feet above mean sea eve and irrigates 5269 ha of agricuture and. Out of this the project was impemented in the upper mid region in about 800 ha covering around 500 farm famiies with popuation of 12860, comprising of 6509 maes and 6351 femaes. Ponnaniyar reservoir is situated in Mugavanur viage of Manapparai Tauk, Trichy district across Ponnaniar River and the ayacut area is 840 ha. The project is operated in the entire 840 ha of area. Ponnaniar reservoir basin (PB) has peope in which mae and femae are 5848 and 5012 respectivey. Figure 1. Study ocation in Tami Nadu 2.1 Adaptation to the impacts of cimate change Technoogies such as modified SRI for improving water use efficiency, promoting cimate resiient rice varieties, Integrated Nutrient Management(INM) with soi test based nutrient appication, Green manuring and biofertiizers appication, integrated pest management, crop rotations with egumes, agro-advisory services, mutiinear agriextension systems supported by ICT toos and Viage Knowedge Centres, promotion of aternate iveihoods and weather based agro advisory system to pan their agricutura 3

4 operations based on the expected weather conditions have the potentia to reduce the water use and adapt to the changing situations of cimate. Targeted capacity buiding of stakehoders and gender main streaming were the strategies adopted whie promoting the above technoogies. a) Modified System of Rice Intensification (MSRI): SRI is considered to be the most suited rice cutivation practice for changing cimate because of its ow water requirement, higher productivity, ow GHG emission and higher profit compared to conventiona fooded rice cutivation system. Given the advantages of SRI, ess than 10 per cent of the farmers are The rice grain yieds under SRI pot in both basins were greater than the Conventiona Technoogies (CT). The grain harvest index for SRI was very high (75%) in both sites, which is above the norma index for rice pant (17-56 %), that might be due to higher grain yieds recorded in SRI pots. The highest grain yied was produced in the treatment containing a six components of SRI, averaging 8.74 t/ha across the two sites. In contrast, the conventiona fooded system yieded ony 5.86 t/ha. The water consumed in SRI was ower than CT in a crop growth stages except during days after transpanting (DAT) period, where water consumption was same under both SRI and CT. In tota, 491 mm water was used by SRI against 630 mm under CT in addition to the rainfa of 480 mm received during cropping season. In addition to the MSRI, the foowing package of recommended practices, programs and institution buiding are more reevant which were taken-up through farmer participatory action research trias in different ocations of the project area. ony adopting in the study basins. This was mainy due to the operationa probems such as: (i) perfect and eveing and proper water management (ii) probems associated with very young singe seeding panting, (iii) unavaiabiity of skied abour for square panting, and (iv)drudgery in cono-weeding operation. To overcome the difficuties, CimaAdapt suggested modifications in the SRI principes and practices, incuding, machine panting 15 days od seedings, 2 seedings per hi, mechanized cono-weeders for weeding, perforated cyindrica fied water tubes for effective impantation of aternate wetting and drying method of irrigation to suit to the study basins. b) Integrated Nutrient and Pest Management: Green manure appication: The impact of green manure appication in improving soi organic matter content was demonstrated in the experimented fieds. The organic matter content before green manure appication was 0.90 and 0.86 percent in Kaingarayan and Ponnaiyar basins respectivey. Through the addition of organic matter through green manure crop (Sesbaniarostrata) heps to increase the soi organic matter content to 0.96 and 0.95 percent respectivey in Kaingarayan and Ponnaiyar basins. More than 1800 soi sampes were anaysed for avaiabe major and secondary nutrients for the entire KB and PB. Soi heath card was issued to farmers with soi test based recommendations for the foowing seasons. Leaf coour charts * It isfaciitated by TNAU and NIBIO, in partnership with Water Resources Organization and Irrigation Management and Training Institute for buiding the capacity of farmers and stakehoders in water management and to faciitate the water distribution and M.S.Swaminathan Research Foundation (MSSRF) to integrate and buid knowedge management and gender perspectives. 4

5 were given to decide the time of top dressing of N fertiizers with proper training to use the same. Micronutrient deficiency information was provided aong with micro nutrient mixtures to appy in the fieds. Bio-fertiizers such as Azospirium and Phosphobacteium were appied in the main fied as we as treated with the seeds. The water fern Azoa was introduced in the paddy fied as dua crop to promote bioogica N-fixation. Azoa was mutipied in the nurseries and appied in the main fied. This has improved the avaiabe nutrients to the crop, minimized the weed infestation, reduced methane fux from rice sois by 14% and increased the grain yied by 11%. The excess Azoa from the paddy fieds was used as green feed to ive stocks and many farmers sod the Azoa to near by catte Rs per kg resuting in additiona farm income. Moreover Azoa appication as dua crop in rice resuted in the saving of chemica N fertiizer (50 kg of urea/ha)). Bio contro bacterium, Pseudomonasfuorescense was recommended to contro bast infestation in rice. Trichogramma egg cards were suppied to the farmers to encourage bioogica contro of caterpiars. These bio contro and integrtaed pest management practices heped the farmers to minimize the over dependence of synthetic pesticides and fungicides in rice farming. c) Weather forecast and agro advisory services Even though reguar weather forecasts are avaiabe to farmers, they are not so famiiar with farmers. Hence, timey and reiabe weather forecasting to the farmers is important (as shown in the project where messages were given to both men and women farmers on every Tuesday and Friday for panning their farming decisions mainy on irrigation and pest and disease contro). This has resuted in saving of inputs (water, pesticides), better abour management and increased crop yieds by 8 to 15 %. Hence, weather forecasting with more accurate predictions and oca cropping system based advisories is usefu to farmers. d) Aternate iveihood options The Ponnanaiar basin in Tami Nadu is a water deficient eco system. The economy heaviy depends on Agricuture and anima husbandry. More than 90 per cent of the peope in the Ponnanaiar reservoir depend on the agricuture sector for their iveihood and any disturbance to monsoon heaviy affects crop productivity and the income generation. This basin aso has more number of sma andhoders and agricutura aborers. Hence creating awareness on various agro based aternate iveihood opportunities woud hep the farm famiies and agricutura aborers to generate iveihood income. Under CimaAdapt project capacity buiding programs on aternate iveihood ventures such as mushroom cutivation, Azoa farming, Vermi composting, Bee keeping for honey production etcwere carried out periodicay. The mushroom cutivation has gained significant importance in Ponnanaiar basin viages. Cimaadapt project heped them to obtain mushroom seed spawn from Tami nadu Agricutura University and aso provided technica hep through their fied scouts. Many women farmers are successfuy cutivating 5

6 oyster mushroom and seing the mushroom in 250-gram Rs.150 per Kg. One farm famiy by maintaining 50 mushroom beds managed an income of Rs in 40 days. These women groups are now confident on this mushroom technoogy and panning to increase the number of mushroom beds in the coming months. They aso use the mushroom for their own use and as mushrooms are the richest source of protein and vitamins, househod consumption woud aso overcome nutritiona deficiencies among rura chidren. Therefore, promotion of the aternate iveihood options and creating awareness and opportunities especiay to women about the aternate income generating activities is one of the main recommendations from the project. e) Targeted capacity buiding Both men and women farmers are in need of specific skis to take up the recommended package of practices and the need based capacity buiding programs were conducted by IMTI, Trichy in technica support from Tami Nadu Agricutura University, Coimbatore. The impact of various training programs (on MSRI, AWD, weather forecast, aternate iveihood options, etc.) and the feedback from the trainees indicated that 86.7% of the trainees have expressed that the training has been very usefu to them by imparting new knowedge and technoogy. As a resut of the training, prospective fied adoption is aso quite high (67%) and a number of andess farmers and women are aso wiing to take part and share the knowedge with others. f) Viage Knowedge centres Viage Knowedge Centres (VKCs) payed a key roe in buiding adaptive capacity among the vunerabe farming community by rendering adaptation strategies and services such as timey forewarning of weather, pest and disease, irrigation scheduing and market rate, quaity inputs and its avaiabiity incuding saine / drought toerant seed varieties, aternate cropping and cutivation practices such as promotion of minor miets, system of rice intensification, aternate drying and wetting method, water management techniques and government schemes and associated entitements. VKCs were estabished in Tami Nadu state with a goa to promote equitabe access to information and knowedge among househods through effective use of I n f o r m a t i o n a n d C o m m u n i c a t i o n Technoogies (ICT). Understanding the vaue of knowedge, the community mobiized Rs acs, which shows their sense of ownership towards VKC. Knowedge Workers were equipped with adequate capacity to manage VKC in a gender sensitive manner and disseminate need based information and knowedge. The common services centre of Government of India has been integrated with VKCs to enabe community to get e-governance services. The overa reach of VKC in the project ocations of Tami Nadu was83,136, of which 31, 591 were women farmers. The anaysis of user pattern unveis that 84percent of the users depend on VKC for agricuture and aied interventions. An assessment conducted among farmers indicate 88 percent of the farmers expressed that the knowedge received from VKCs meets their need and are satisfied of the quaity of the knowedge services, of which 60% of the users have appied the knowedge and information services. It is usefu to provide timey and reevant information to farmers for better decision making and panning. The strategic partners both pubic and private vaue VKCs and use it as a knowedge patform for reaching out their schemes to the community. A study conducted among the users showed that 83% of the farmers foow the advisories and recommendations provided through pant cinic, in which 67% of farmers stated that they reaized increased income between Rs Rs per acre. 3. Poicy Recommendations The Government of Tami Nadu (GoTN) has prepared the State Leve Action Pan on Cimate 6

7 Change (SAPCC) for seven identified sectors in October It was endorsed by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Cimate Change (MoEFCC) in March The major aspects of the initiatives incude precision farming for efficient use of resources, infrastructure deveopment to manage future water crisis, impementation of nationa food security mission on puses (NFSM-P), and increasing farm income by horticuture crops, etc. Apart from these initiatives, other government programmes that hep to buid the resiience among oca men and women to cope up the adverse situations are: S e f H e p G ro u p s p ro m o t e d b y Mahairthittam to organise women in coectives, improve access to credit and aternate iveihoods. So far, 193,000 groups having a membership of about 3 miion women have been organized and encouraged to take up mutipe iveihoods depending on their skis and resources. Nationa Rura Empoyment Guarantee Act (NREGA) which provides a ega guarantee of 100 days of wage empoyment in a financia year to every rura househod whose adut members vounteer to do unskied manua work with minimum assured wage. Crop insurance schemes and access to forma credit at esser interest rates for farmers were aso introduced in the state. Give the scope of expanding the impantation of the recommended package of adaptation strategies in the state aong with the existing government initiative, the foowing recommendations are made from the CimaAdapt project: The water saving and cimate smart adaptation practices such as MSRI with aternate wetting and drying has to be upscaed in the identified areas of Tami Nadu. Technoogy adoption incentives can be provided to the farmers by convergence of different government programs to address the technoogy spread and adoption. Daiy weather forecast and agro-advisory services to the farming community through VKCs can address immediate soutions and improve the adaptation of technoogies. The key promising technoogies and aternate iveihood activities viz.,azoa, vaue addition to miet products and mushroom production can be promoted as aternative adaptation practices to the cimate variabiity. Up-scaing the successfu capacity buiding program modues and VKCs at state eve covering different project areas and crops. Gender main streaming component to be added in a the capacity buiding and impementation programs to address the cimate change reated impementation packages. Initiatives such as the Cimate Water Forum wi hep to address some of the key emerging issues on cimate resiient agricuture where a stakehoders can converge and exchange ideas and impementation protocos. Acknowedgement: This poicy brief is an output of the CimaAdapt project funded by Norwegian Embassy, New Dehi. The Internationa Water Management Institute (IWMI), Water and Land Management Training and Research Institute (WALAMTARI), Tami Nadu Agricutura University (TNAU), M.S.Swaminathan Research Foundation (MSSRF), and Norwegian Institute of Bioeconomy Research (NIBIO) are the partners of the project. 7

8 Reference Paanisami. K, C.R. Ranganathan, Udaya Sekhar Nagothu and Krishna Reddy Kakumanu, Cimate Change and Agricuture in India: Studies from seected River Basins. Pp 101. Routedge, New Dehi. Vadive, E Precision farming practices. Tami Nadu Agricutura University, Coimbatore. Govt. of Tami Nadu Tami Nadu- An Economic Appraisa to Evauation and Appied Research Department, Chennai. G e e t h a a k s h m i V, A. L a k s h m a n a n, D. Rajaakshmi, R. Jagannathan, Gummidi Sridhar, A. P. Ramaraj, K. Bhuvaneswari, L. Gurusamy and R. Anbhazhagan Cimate change impact assessment and adaptation strategies to sustain rice production in Cauvery Basin of Tami Nadu. Current science, 101(3): Bhuvaneswari. K., V. Geethaakshmi, A. Lakshmanan and R. Anbhazhagan Crop Weather Mode: An effective too for assessing the impacts of cimate change and deveoping adaptation strategies in rice, Journa of Agrometeoroogy, 16(1) p S o n a i M c D e r m i d, R. G o w t h a m, K. Bhuvaneswari, Geethaakshmi Veingiri and Lakshmanan Arunachaam The impacts of cimate change on Tami Nadu rainfed maize production: a muti-mode approach to identify sensitivities and Uncertainties. Current science, 110 (7), Dr. Udaya Sekhar Nagothu Director, Internationa Department Norwegian Institute of Bioeconomy Research (NIBIO) nagothu.udayasekhar@nibio.no Dr. V. Geethaakshmi Professor, Agricutura Coege and Research Institute, Madurai, Taminadu Agricutura University geetha@tnau.ac.in Dr. K. Yea Reddy Director (Agricuture and Research), Water and Land Management Training and Research Institute (WALAMTARI) yeark@gmai.com Dr. K. Krishna Reddy Regiona Researcher, Internationa Water Management Institute (IWMI) k.krishnareddy@cgiar.org Nancy J Anabe Director, Information Education and Communication M. S. Swaminathan Research Foundation Taramani, Chennai anabe@mssrf.res.in