Response of the North American Corn Belt to Climatic Warming, CO sub 2

摘要

The climate of the North American corn belt was characterized to estimate the effects of climatic change on that agricultural region. Heat and moisture characteristics of the current corn belt were identified and mapped based on a simulated climate for a doubling of atmospheric CO sub 2 concentrations. The result was a map of the projected corn belt corresponding to the simulated climatic change. Such projections were made with and without an allowance for earlier planting dates that could occur under a CO sub 2 -induced climatic warming. Because the direct effects of CO sub 2 increases on plants, improvements in farm technology, and plant breeding are not considered, the resulting projections represent an extreme or worst case. The results indicate that even for such a worst case, climatic conditions favoring corn production would not extend very far into Canada. Climatic buffering effects of the Great Lakes would apparently retard northeastward shifts in corn-belt location. (ERA citation 08:054881)