Introduction
The problem of the protection and transformation of ecosystems has some related aspects: their protection, the rational use in the process of economic activity and the creation of cultural landscapes. The detailed calculation of the characteristics of natural territorial complexes for their economic use is one of the determining aspects of the rational use of nature. Hence the importance of their knowledge and the determination of their natural potential derives.
In the current state of physical space planning, the creation of large regional data banks and the establishment of observatory networks equipped with the latest communication technologies are considered urgent.
Only from the inventory of the information and with the updated feeding of the data will it be possible to effectively undertake the difficult and important task of homogenizing and analyzing the different variables with a view to integration and application to spatial planning (Corellano, 1993).
The consequences of climatic changes in the set of economic activities, population and ecosystems are certainly significant, they will increase throughout the century and in many cases they are hardly reversible (IPCC, 2007). In this context, the magnitude of the estimated costs of the induced impacts, both those related to adaptation processes and mitigation processes, seems to indicate that climate change will be an essential conditioning factor for the characteristics and options of economic development in this century.
According to Claveria (2007), climate should be understood as the average weather conditions of a region, which is a function of the time of year; it is the set of the expected conditions of meteorological variables such as temperature, precipitation, cloudiness, wind, humidity, etc; obtained through averages over a number of years.
Scientists around the world now agree that the climate changes we are all experiencing globally are real.and they are the result of human activity. For Adger et al; (2005) regional changes, both in temperature and in the hydrological cycle, as a consequence of a human-induced climate change, would negatively impact both agriculture and the spread of infectious diseases. Studies done by Gay et al; (2006), Conde and Palma (2007) agree that corn, sugar cane and coffee crops in general would be negatively affected, both by an increase in temperature and by a decrease in precipitation in the region. It also has the criterion that changes in temperature and rain could influence the incidence of epidemic outbreaks of infectious diseases, related to atmospheric conditions for the studied region.
For all the aforementioned, it is necessary to implement a system for surveillance and early warning of drought, hazard studies, risk assessment and natural disasters such as cyclones, floods and landslides that so many loss of human and material lives have caused in the world; seasonal forecasts and information management using satellite images and the use of chalk.
The greenhouse effect
Adger et al; (2005) point out that gases are a natural condition of the Earth's atmosphere. Some gases, such as water vapors, carbon dioxide (CO2), and methane are called greenhouse gases because they trap heat from the sun in the lower layers of the atmosphere. There is a scientific consensus that global warming is a consequence of human action, due to its continuous emission of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere (Salomón et al; 2007).
Different gases present in the air around us trap heat from the sun. They act as a sheet around the earth. They keep the temperature of the earth warm enough to enable human life. These gases in our atmosphere are known as 'greenhouse gases'. However, for the past 150 years, humans have been burning fuel for factories, vehicles, and homes at a rapidly increasing rate. This has increasingly released greenhouse gases, especially carbon dioxide, resulting in continuously rising temperatures in the Earth's atmosphere, which in turn cause 'global warming' and climate change.. (IPCC Climate Change 2007).
As the planet warms up, the polar helmets melt. Furthermore, the heat of the sun when it reaches the poles is reflected back into space. As the polar ice caps melt, the less amount of heat is reflected, which will cause the earth to heat up even more. Global warming will also cause more water to evaporate from the oceans. Water vapor acts as a greenhouse gas (Barcala and Morgiardino, 2005).
Influence of agriculture on climate change
Livestock and livestock waste also produce gases that favor global climate change. Some are local, like ammonia, but others like carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), and nitrous oxide (N2O) contribute significantly to global warming or the "greenhouse effect." The contribution of livestock to this effect can be estimated at 18% (FAO, 2007).
If land use emissions are included, the livestock sector is responsible for 9% of the carbon dioxide emitted, but produces a much higher percentage of the most damaging greenhouse gases. It generates 65% of nitrous oxide of human origin, which has 296 times the Global Warming Potential (GWP) of CO2 and 64% of ammonia, which contributes significantly to acid rain. Most of this gas comes from manure (Cantero y Fuentes 2007).
Influence of climate change on agriculture
The alteration of climate patterns undoubtedly affects agricultural productivity in different ways, depending on the types of agricultural practices, production systems and period, crops, varieties and impact zones (IPCC, Climate Change 2007).
It is estimated that the main direct effects derived from variations in temperature and precipitation, mainly, would be the duration of the cultivation cycles, physiological changes, exposure to temperatures outside the permitted threshold, water deficiencies and response to new CO2 concentrations. Some indirect effects of the expected changes would occur in the populations of parasites, pests and diseases (migration, concentration, population flows, incidences, etc.) nutrient availability in the soil and agricultural planning (dates of planting, tillage, marketing, etc. (Watson, et al; 1997 and Cesar et al; 2008).
Agriculture is highly sensitive to changes in climate, since its actions take place in the open air, making it one of the most vulnerable sectors to the risks caused by climate change (Reilly, 1995, Smith and Skinner, 2002). Adaptation to climate change is essential, since if this adaptation is not achieved, the impact on yields and the quality of the harvest will be seriously affected (Tingem et al; 2008), which will affect the economies of the communities, almost always more disadvantaged.
Drought, together with the salinity of the soils, constitutes a serious problem that affects crop yields and the sustainability of agriculture. Nearly 10% of the planet's surface is affected by these types of stress and due to this, some 10 million hectares are abandoned.
Humanity has probably never had to face such a huge challenge. The future of our beautiful planet really is in our hands. We can all play a role, analyzing our own lifestyle and doing everything possible to protect our environment. We cannot reverse the damage already caused, but we can try to mitigate the impact. This aspect focuses on the experiences of farmers around the world and shares practical information about what they are doing to adapt and protect their environment. (, Adger et al; 2005, Challinor et al; 2007).
Study of the climate in the Farm and the territory.
Physical subsystem.
The study area in Campo Florido covers an area of 30 km2. It is located mainly on calcareous sandstones, soft limestone and ultra-basic rocks, followed by carbonated or non-carbonated materials and siliceous sandstones.
It presents altitudes that oscillate between 13.4 and 40. m asl, being the relief undulating (4.1 - 8.0%). The climate, as in the rest of the country, is tropical rainy with dry winter. Annual average rainfall 1347.3 mm, average temperature 23.6ºC, the average annual insolation is 7.4 light-hours / day. The NE and NNE component winds predominate with speeds 4.5 km / h inland and 10 km / h towards the coast. The characteristics of its unique climate should be studied more particularly.
Geographical situation of La Rosita:
The Finca "La Rosita" is located in the Municipality "Habana del Este" in the Campo Florido People's Council. It limits to the North with the Town of Guanabo, to the South with the town of Arango, to the east with that of Campo Florido and to the West with the Municipality of Guanabacoa. The Farm is surrounded by areas belonging to the Bacuranao Livestock Company.
Of the 45.7 ha that the farm has, 29.3% is occupied by foresters, 21.2% by temporary crops and infrastructure by 20.13%; reason why these activities occupy 70.63% of the total surface. Pasture and forage for cattle occupies 22.2%, that is, almost a quarter of the entire surface. The summary information appears in Table 1.
Table 1. Distribution of the land use of the Granja la Rosita.
The main identified soils of the Farm are the Pardos, In general the soils of this region are characterized by having a shallower thickness in the higher parts, with eluvial formation and by the redistribution of materials (deluvia) and humidity, Soils in the lower parts are deeper and more plastic (López, 2006).
Brown soils are the most extensive in the Farm, very clayey, rich in 2: 1 type clays, with dark colors in the A horizon and brown to dark in the B. They are shallow, the pH is above 7, a low content of organic matter (2.80%). Other variants of this soil, such as the brown, vertic, and washed calcium brown, have a slightly lower pH in the A horizon (6.40), but a slightly higher OM content (3.24%), decreasing with depth; or Vertisol Pelic calcium fluffy soil, with a similar pH over 7 and MO higher than 3%.
The effective depth is among the agro-productive limiting factors in crop development in this study area, according to Hernández et al; (2006). The predominant effective depth in soils is between shallow (30.5% of the area) and medium deep (29.5% of the area). There are few deep soil areas (7.1%) and very deep they do not exist.
In this case, the effective depth of the soils is given by the vertic character of much of the territory, both in the Vertisols themselves and in the soils of the vertic subtype. The prismatic blocks of the vertic character of the soils, in the dry season, harden considerably constituting a limitation to the penetration of the roots of the plants and the tasks of soil preparation and general technology.
As for the degree of erosion in the study region, soils with little erosion (47.1%) and non-eroded (20.0%) predominate.
The erosive processes are not so marked due to the fact that a large part of the territory is occupied by pastures and also that with the first downpours a secondary vegetation is implanted that protects the soil against erosion, as is typical for tropical climates.
Regarding the content of organic matter, it is one of the serious problems that the soils of tropical regions have, given the high degree of mineralization of organic matter, especially when it is put into agricultural exploitation. Depending on the crop being planted, the climate and agricultural management will be the organic matter content of the soil.
Due to these results, moderately humidified soils predominate (2.1-4.0% of organic matter), with 43.3% of the area and also low humidified ones (25.4% of the area). Humidified soils (4.1-6% humus) only 7.5% of the territory.
The degree of relief slope is a fundamental factor in soil productivity and management. The behavior of the degree of slope in the soils shows that flat slopes (18.5%), slightly wavy (23.6%) and wavy 19.75) predominate. This relief behavior is also related to the fact that the soils do not show a marked degree of erosion.
Of these soil studies carried out by López (2006) recommendations for their management were made, the most significant are:
- The need to increase the content of organic matter in the soil through the development of vermiculture and other organic management practices.
- Promote contour planting in the parts with the highest risk of erosion.
- The application of biofertilizers.
The characterization of the elements of the climate around the Farm were obtained through information from the Casa Blanca Meteorological Station and the Campo Florido Pluviometric Station. The information obtained was about temperature and rainfall.
The last ten years of the 30 years evaluated were considered for the study and were the following elements: Temperature per decade and monthly average; the annual intervals, the difference between the averages of the warmest month and the coldest month, as well as the total monthly precipitations and the extreme values of the pluviometric modules.
Results of climate studies
The study area classifies as tropical rainy, with relatively dry sub-humid tropical dry winter. Regarding the distribution of rainfall throughout the year, if we consider the monthly total average values, a typical pluviometric distribution of the tropical climate is observed. The maximum rainfall in summer corresponds to the period from May to October, while the minimum in winter corresponds to the period from November to April. The average annual rainfall is 11331.9 mm in this period 2001-2010 (Data taken from the Pluviometric Station of Campo Florido). (Figure 1).
The dry period from November to April is the high stage for sowing and development of pastures and temporary crops; however, at this stage it is very important to make rational use of water, because it reduces the available reserves of the stream and lowers the water table of the well.
For Adger et al; (2005) Gay et al; (2006), Conde and Palma (2007) agree that regional changes, both in temperature and in the hydrological cycle, as a consequence of a human-induced climate change, negatively affect agriculture.
In this area where the Farm is located, there is a period of intense drought that seems to increase over the years. This warning of climate change should alert to propose production strategies in each period, that is, from May to October, establish food reserves for the dry period harvesting it in the wet period, especially for livestock, and thus decrease dependence of external food supplies in this period of greatest drought.
On the other hand, the average temperature ranges from 23 to 25 degrees Celsius, reaching higher values in the months of July and August, and the lowest values in the months of January and February. Temperatures have varied greatly in recent years in this area (figure 4.2), and, according to (Salomón et al; 2007), the negative impact of human action has had an impact on this and has a high influence on climate change.. In the Study Area there is evidence of this change: criteria of experienced farmers of the Farm state that “years ago, beans were planted from the month of September and, however, in recent years, the greatest harvest is obtained when beans are planted from December ”.
Figure 2 shows the tendency of the temperature to rise, causing many changes, especially in the precipitation regime and other effects confirmed by IPCC (2007) and Climate Change (2007). High temperatures also affect the germination of the seeds of many crops; exhaustion of cattle in pasture of paddocks without shadows even when there are more adapted breeds such as zebu, but not so the dairy breeds; so this can be a good argument for planting live fences and trees that provide shade for grazing animals in the hottest hours. High temperatures also affect the duration of working hours for draft animals and farmers. This is important to keep in mind when establishing the working hours of farm workers on the Farm,Since there are 20% who demand cooler time changes, which would be justified, given the increase in temperature that has been felt in Cuba in recent years.
Conclusions
1. In the current state of physical space management in Campo Florido, it is considered that there are objective and subjective conditions to use regional climate databases and the establishment of observatory networks equipped with the latest technologies, which must be incorporated into the network. of communication of the territory based on a more concrete result in the agrarian and rural sector of Campo Florido.
2. In the Study Area there is evidence of climatic changes that show a tendency in recent years to obtain the best bean harvests from the month of November or December, moving from the traditional period of October.
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