Chatelaine_April_May_2019

80 CHATELAINE • APRIL/MAY 1019

PHOTO COURTESY OF JULIE STANKEVICIUS.

Global food security

predictions look dire,

with one major

exception: By the end

of the century, growing

seasons of more than

120 days (which we

currently only have in

the Niagara peninsula

and southern B.C.)

are expected for the

Prairies as far north as

the N.W.T. and Yukon.

A longer season and

higher temperatures

mean farms will

be able to grow corn

and soybeans.

As the northern parts

of the Prairies become

the breadbasket of the

world, the southern

region is expected to

become a dust bowl.

Mountain snow is

melting earlier in

the season, leaving

Prairie watersheds

dry in spring. When

combined with hotter

temperatures, that

means increased

drought risks in the

B.C. interior and

Prairies. To make

matters worse,

warmer temperatures

also bring weeds,

pests and diseases

not endemic to the

area, like quack grass

and giant ragweed.

Insects like grasshop-

pers and the orange

wheat blossom midge

will be gobbling up

15 to 20 percent

of wheat and corn

yields by 2100.

The Canadian

Prairies will

get a longer

growing season

But parts of the

Prairies will be

a dust bowl