Most of the efforts in Rhode Island to address climate change have so far focused on how coastal communities can prepare for rising sea levels and eroding beaches. A new initiative linking 12 Northeast states will help farmers and forest owners adapt to the changing climate, too—and URI has a lead role.

More information at climatehubs.oce.usda.gov.

1. Climate-related threats to farming include changes to planting cycles, new pests moving into the area, and more extreme weather events. “Increasingly severe storms are going to cause all sorts of problems for agriculture,” said Bill Buffum, a URI research scientist who is managing the project in Rhode Island. “And rain patterns are expected to shift, so rainfall in winter will go up, but we’ll have more drought in the summer.”

2. Universities in the Northeast Climate Hub (one of seven federally funded around the country) have already begun to interview local farmers to learn about their specific vulnerabilities and plan pilot projects to help.

3. One of the first projects will address increased storm runoff from farms. “With the heavy rainfalls that are coming, nitrogen and phosphorous will work their way into our drinking water systems,” Buffam said. “We’re looking at ways to plant more vegetation along stream banks that could absorb some of those nutrients. And hopefully the plantings could be something the farmers could earn some money from.”

4. Universities in other states will be testing other ways of adapting to climate change—in Connecticut, for example, the first project is experimenting with different methods of tilling the soil so it doesn’t dry out so fast.