Agriculture

Agriculture strategies/approaches.

Taxonomy Machine Name
niacs_strategy_ag
Taxonomy Alias
ag

Wetlands are dependent on hydrology. More frequent and intense storms may increase harmful inputs, while seasonal precipitation may become more variable affecting surface and groundwater-fed communities in unpredictable ways.

Submitted by dshannon on

Altered hydrology is the greatest anticipated impact on non-forested wetlands due to climate change. The likelihood of more extreme precipitation events increases the risk of erosion and sedimentation as well as nutrient runoff, which can fuel the transportation and growth of non-native invasive plants and weedy native species. The impact of these events is likely to be greatest lower in the watershed, where floodwaters collect for a longer period of time.

Non-forested wetland

Submitted by dshannon on

Wetland is a natural community group that broadly characterizes several distinct natural communities. Non-forested wetlands broadly includes: Alder Thicket, Bog Relict, Boreal Rich Fen, Calcareous Fen, Central Poor Fen, Coastal Plain Marsh, Emergent Marsh, Ephemeral Pond, Moist Sandy Meadow, Muskeg, Northern Sedge Meadow, Open Bog, Pattered Peatland, Poor Fen, Shore Fen, Shrub-Carr, Southern Sedge Meadow. Some wetlands like sedge meadows and Shrub-carr are tolerant of a wide variety of water levels, while Emergent Marsh already thrives in high nutrient environments.

Drought risk is expected to increase across the Midwest by the end of the century.

Submitted by sdhandler on

Multiple factors may contribute to increasing drought risk across the Midwest. Trends of higher temperatures, longer growing seasons, and more multi-day periods without rainfall may have compounding effects. Additionally, vapor pressure deficit (the difference between how much moisture is in the air and the amount of moisture the air can hold at saturation) is projected to increase by 20-80% by the end of the century across a range of climate scenarios. This will lead to a net drying effect as the air draws more moisture out of plants and soil.

Droughts are likely to become more frequent and severe across the Northern Great Plains.

Submitted by KGiesting on

Although more rainfall is expected overall, warming temperatures will increase evaporative demand, leading to more frequent and severe drought in the future. Some of the negative effects of drying may be offset by the increased atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide, which can stimulate plant growth and increase water-use efficiency. Soil water availability during the growing season is expected to increase for the northern parts of this region, and decrease in southern parts.

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