Micro-Climate Engineering for Climate Change Adaptation in Agriculture

Can farmers adapt to climate change by altering weather conditions on their fields? We define the concept of Micro-Climate Engineering (MCE), where farmers change the effective temperatures on their crops by means of shading... [ view full abstract ]

Can farmers adapt to climate change by altering weather conditions on their fields? We define the concept of Micro-Climate Engineering (MCE), where farmers change the effective temperatures on their crops by means of shading or heating, and document such implementation by California pistachio growers. With rising winter temperatures in the San Joaquin Valley, pistachio growers in California could face adverse climatic conditions within 20 years. Treating dormant trees with a chemical mix, acting as a shading technology, has shown to increase winter chill count to acceptable levels. Simulating climate and market conditions in 2030, we find the expected potential gains from this MCE technique in the billions of dollars.