Today’s Climate Change Poster Collection focus on Pests and diseases in crops. Climate change, specifically global warming, is exacerbating the harmful impact of pests, diseases, and weeds on our natural resources and public health. This intensification brings with it an increased risk of vector-borne diseases, such as Lyme disease. Various factors are contributing to this dangerous escalation.
One major factor is the stimulation of weed growth by higher CO2 levels. This leads to intensified competition with crops and, in turn, can contribute to crop failure. Meanwhile, climate change-induced droughts are weakening tree defenses against insects, further exacerbating the issue.
The threat to our food supply is significant. Climate change could facilitate the spread of plant pests and diseases, resulting in an estimated loss of up to 40% of food crops annually. These pests and diseases, once primarily confined to the tropics, are now moving into temperate regions due to changes in temperature and rainfall patterns.
Increased CO2 levels don’t only stimulate weed growth, they can also indirectly affect pests by altering the structure of their host plant and weakening its defenses. This can lead to more severe disease outbreaks than we have seen previously. Crop shortages due to these escalating pest and disease issues are driving up the prices of goods like cocoa, olive oil, and orange juice. This trend is expected to worsen as we experience increasing extreme weather events.
The economic cost of these changes is staggering. According to the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization, plant diseases alone cost the global economy over $220 billion annually. Invasive insects add at least $70 billion to this bill, as pests adapt to climate change, reproducing and migrating faster in warmer temperatures.
Rising temperatures are expanding the geographic range of pests, leading to the spread of diseases and affecting crops on a global scale. Tomatoes in India, olives in Spain, grains in China, and oranges in the US and Brazil are all under threat. This is the reality of climate change and its impact on pests and diseases. It’s a global issue that requires urgent attention if we are to safeguard our food supply and protect our ecosystems.
Discover an inspiring collection of climate change poster.
