Climate Resilience Livestock Production in Coastal Ecosystem of India

Climate change is one of the important factors in livestock sector affecting their production and reproduction. India has large areas of highly productive coastal ecosystems which include approximately 5,000 km2 of mangroves, 1,700 km2 of salt marshes, 177,000 km2 of seagrass ecosystems and approximately 2,300 km2 of coral reefs. Different human activities are causing damage to the coastal ecosystems thus climate change is having detrimental effects via global warming, thereby increasing the severity as well as frequency of cyclones and associated storms, acidification of seawater, occurrence of floods and increased air and water temperature. Studies suggest that if sea temperature rises by 2 to 4°C, the intensity of cyclones hitting the coastal areas can rise by 10-20%. Increased frequencies of extreme weather conditions, floods, and lack of rain will degrade grasslands, fodder production and quality of the fodder. Thus, the livestock as well as the keepers need to be resilient to the changing environment and continue to improve their production to meet the demand from the growing population. According to IPCC, resilience is defined as the capacity of social, economic and environmental systems to cope with a hazardous event or trend or disturbance by responding or reorganizing in a way to maintain their essential function, identity and structure while also maintaining the capacity for adaptation, learning and transformation. In time weather forecasting for early warning of hazardous weather events will allow the farmers to save the animals from bad weather conditions like severe heat, cold waves, heavy rains thunderstorms, cyclones and floods. Adopting several strategies like use of locally adapted breeds/varieties, genetic improvement of animals, scientifically designed housings, improving diets, better herd and grassland management, establishment of climate resilient smart villages with shelters for man and animals during climatic havoc, etc., will help in combating with the changing climate.