We’re doomed, because the climate should always stay exactly the same, just like it did till 1988 when CO2 passed 350ppm
(Climate Progress) It’s known as “blue gold†and it has been cultivated in Provence, France since the Middle Ages. But now, a tiny bacteria-infected cicada is laying waste to a crop which is as iconically tied to Provence as lobsters are to Maine, or maple syrup is to Vermont — lavender. Researchers studying the lavender worry that the problem will only get worse as climate change leads to hotter and drier summers in Provence, ideal conditions for the spread of the pest.
Unlike it’s larger cousin the cicada, which is loud but harmless, the cicadelle, or leafhopper in English, attacks lavender plants in two ways. Cicadelle larva feast on lavender roots all winter long and then the adults attack the leaves in the spring and early summer. Even more destructive, however, is a micro-bacteria called stolbur phytoplasma, carried by the hungry insects that blocks the plants’ sap canals, causing the plant’s inevitable decline
Even if a means of controlling the pest is developed in time, the march of climate change will likely force lavender cultivation to move northwards, perhaps out of Provence altogether.
Wait, you want to control pest? Why are you messing with Mother Nature? Really, though, what’s this about?
(Guardian) Now locals, whose livelihoods depend on the plants, are appealing for funds to save the lavender that has been produced in the region since the Middle Ages.
Money. The climate is always changing, so people are using the “climate change” scare to get some cool cash. Back to Climate Progress
Provence is far from the only flower-growing region in the world to face new climate challenges. Kenya is the biggest exporter of cut roses to the European Union, responsible for 38 percent of the market share. In 2012, Kenya exported a total of 123, 511 tons of flowers, worth $500 million. But a long-standing drought in Kenya is forcing flower growers to turn to precious and scarce lake resources to keep their valuable crops alive.
In the U.S. Northwest, the problem is too much water. The Snoqualmie Valley near Seattle, where lilies, gladiolas and dahlias thrive, is increasingly stressed by wet weather and floods — 23 since 2006 alone. In 2009, the Snoqualmie River crested at 62 feet, eight feet above flood stage, breaking the previous record set in 2006 when the river crested at 61 feet. Most flower growing operations in the valley are small, family farms that are least able to weather the financial losses.
So, wet and dry are Bad. Yup. Cult.
