July 28, 2014

Study: Climate change and air pollution will combine to curb food supplies



Ozone and higher temperatures can combine to reduce crop yields, but effects will vary by region.

Many studies have shown the potential for global climate change to cut food supplies. But these studies have, for the most part, ignored the interactions between increasing temperature and air pollution — specifically ozone pollution, which is known to damage crops.

A new study involving researchers at MIT shows that these interactions can be quite significant, suggesting that policymakers need to take both warming and air pollution into account in addressing food security.