Wildfires and climate change: Rising temperatures threaten nutrition security

16 Jun 2023 --- Multiple threats are jeopardizing the global agricultural system, including crop damage, malnutrition and food insecurity, due to the effects of Canada’s wildfires and the impacts of global warming. Smoke from Canada’s wildfires spread all the way to Norway, and this year’s June has been declared the hottest June on record in some parts of the world. 

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change says that climate change affecting forestry, agriculture, fisheries and aquaculture is continuously hindering meeting human needs, and further reveals that human-induced global warming has slowed agricultural growth for the last 50 years.

Nutrition Insight speaks with Dr. Chloe Brimicombe, a climate scientist at Wegener Center, University of Graz, Austria, and Manoj Joshi, professor at the University of East Anglia’s Climatic Research Unit, England, about how climate change poses a threat to worsening the global crises of malnutrition.

“Rising temperatures as a result of climate change are a health crisis. We know that heat extremes can cause a reduction in overall yields for major crops worldwide. In terms of our bodies, heat directly impacts how much food someone might intake and when in the day they will want to eat food,” Brimicombe notes.

“There is a relationship between exposure to extreme heat and levels of child stunted growth, which can be linked to malnutrition. The droughts at the horn of Africa played a role in widespread famine and malnutrition.”

She adds that the overall relationship is complex, and inequities significantly affect who could face malnutrition. “We know that climate change largely worsens inequities and this in some cases leads to a rise in malnutrition.”

The hundreds of wildfires in Canada have been described as the country’s most severe wildfire season. Reuters reported on June 5 that 8.2 million acres have already been burned, “about 13 times more than the average over the last decade.”

Inequities significantly affect who could face malnutrition, says Brimicombe.“Human destruction”
This year’s June exceeded a 1.5 degrees Celsius increase according to Copernicus – a program by the EU – and the first 11 days of the month were registered as “the hottest ever.”

“The world is warming as scientists have predicted, and anthropogenic climate change is the reason. We have breached 1.5 degrees warming periodically this month – which means we have not breached the Paris Agreement, as that requires the average longer-term temperatures to be consistently above the 1.5 degree threshold,” says Melissa Lazenby, lecturer in climate change at the University of Sussex, UK.

“That being said, we are consistently getting closer to breaching 1.5 degrees Celsius in the long term, and this should be a stern warning sign that we are heading into hot uncharted territory.” 

Joshi further tells us that the threat to health and nutrition is multifaceted. Heat waves are a major health hazard as temperatures increase worldwide as events above a given threshold become more frequent. “Research has shown that the ranges of some diseases are changing as winters become milder and summers become warmer.” 

Lazenby stresses that we are heading into an “El Nino” event, a natural phenomenon where we experience warmer global temperatures on average. Therefore, it is “no surprise” we are exceeding thresholds of 1.5 degrees Celsius temporarily. 

“We require urgent action and a significant reduction in emissions to avoid exceeding 1.5 degrees Celsius in the longer term. This is just a stark reminder of how close we are getting and how serious the impacts are,” she adds.

Crops vulnerability
In 2022, Europe suffered an extreme harvest failure, and rising temperatures caused historical stress on the continent’s farmland. As this year’s temperature in June is higher than previously, food availability may decrease, and food prices increase. 

“We could likely breach the 1.5 degrees Celsius threshold of baseline temperatures again this year, with suggestions we already have. Some regions will continue to see extreme heat, drought and wildfire, but it is not a uniform picture. I think there is some concern over global food prices going forward,” stresses Brimicombe.

She explains that the last five years have seen high baseline temperatures and many heatwaves and other weather extremes linked to climate change. “I think it would be interesting to research more specifically. I think we have the potential for food and commodity prices to be affected this year.”

“Mitigation of climate emissions to net zero has the benefit of reducing the likelihood of extreme weather. Adaptation through improving resilience to climate shocks and providing anticipatory action for food shortages can reduce levels of malnutrition,” Brimicombe underscores.

Joshi argues that as the world continues to heat up, warm months will become more frequent until they are the new normal.Joshi stresses the ranges of some diseases are changing as winters become milder and summers become warmer.

“In a few decades, unless carbon emissions are sharply reduced, months that are 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels will be regarded as cold rather than warm outliers.” 

Crops of different sorts will encounter difficulties due to warmer weather and potentially more heatwaves or drought, Joshi underscores. 

Wildfires, drought and floods
Last year, Pakistan experienced its worst-ever flooding, leading to 1,300 people losing their lives and destroying local food production, employment and food access. 

According to a study, flooding caused by climate change could impact 5.6 million people in Africa and stressed “the urgent need for action to prevent food system infrastructure from collapsing.”

“Each time we tip over 1.5 degrees with increasing regularity, it is a worrying sign that we are getting closer to the point of no return. This doesn’t mean we should give up, though,” says Hannah Cloke, a professor of hydrology, University of Reading, England. 

“Keeping average temperatures to 1.6 degrees would lead to significantly better outcomes for millions of people than if we hit 1.7. These figures may seem like dry data, but they represent more floods, droughts and fires,” she concludes.

By Beatrice Wihlander