Global warming will force Irish farmers to change their crop systems to growing maize, lucerne and other drought resistant crops, a conference in Dublin was told yesterday.
Dr Myles Rath, of the faculty of agri-food and the environment in UCD, told the the International Grassland Congress that summer droughts leading to severe reductions in grass growth were likely to be more common over the coming decades.
"Four of the five warmest years recorded in central England since records began in 1772 have occurred since 1990. Also, an analysis of weather data for the UK for the past 150 years shows higher levels of rainfall in winter and lower levels in summer since the mid 1970s," Dr Rath said.
In a paper prepared jointly with Mr Steve Peel of the UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Dr Rath said evidence of climate change is becoming stronger.