Agriculture | Circle of Blue WaterNews

Infographic: Wild Rice is Keystone Species for Upper Great Lakes Region

Written by Kelly Shea
Friday, 05 August 2011 13:35
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Wild Rice is an aquatic grass that is harvested annually for its nutritious grain. Throughout its growth cycle, wild rice encounters many external threats, both environmental and human-made, which are being compounded by the effects of climate change.

Where Food Grows on Water: Environmental and Human Threats to Wisconsin’s Wild Rice

Written by Codi Yeager-Kozacek
Thursday, 04 August 2011 06:00
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Wild rice on the Bad River Reservation in northern Wisconsin is in the floating leaf stage by early June, with a single shoot lying on the water’s surface. This is considered one of the most critical—and and dangerous—stages in the rice’s life cycle. The plants are just beginning to change physiologically from exchanging gases with the water column to exchanging gases with the air. Therefore, they are very susceptible to heavy rains and flooding events that can either rip out the young plants by the roots, or drown them. June 6, 2011.

For generations, the upper Great Lakes region has boasted harvests of wild rice, growing in Lake Superior and other watersheds within the basin. But disease, dams, and climate change are now endangering the uncultivated bounty.

Worsening Humanitarian Crisis: Unprecedented Drought and Famine in Horn of Africa

Written by Nadya Ivanova
Tuesday, 19 July 2011 06:00
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The drought has gripped large regions of eastern Africa, leaving an estimated 11 million people in need of humanitarian assistance, and is likely to continue for much of the year, according to the United Nations.

Extreme Weather Hampers Grain Production — Droughts in France and Germany, Floods in Ohio

Written by Codi Yeager-Kozacek
Monday, 06 June 2011 12:30
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Two of the world’s most important crops, corn and wheat, are on track to meet global demand, despite water woes.

Photo Slideshow: Food and Farmers — China’s Other Challenge

Written by J. Carl Ganter
Thursday, 26 May 2011 12:39
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The farm sector and the coal sector together made up 85 percent of water used in China last year. These photos take a look at the people and places affected by rising energy demand, accelerating modernization, and diminishing freshwater resources.

China’s Other Looming Choke Point: Food Production

Written by Keith Schneider
Thursday, 26 May 2011 09:56
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