In 2021, the Maryland State legislature asked the Harry R. Hughes Center for Agro-Ecology (Hughes Center), Maryland Department of Agriculture (MDA), and Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE) to create a process and strategy to develop a Climate Vulnerability Assessment for Maryland Agriculture. Input from Maryland farmers and representatives of agricultural entities is needed to inform this statewide effort.
The last climate vulnerability assessment performed for Maryland was published in 2010. However, climate science has advanced to the point where it is now possible to develop mitigation strategies for farmers experiencing impacts to their productions caused by climate change.
The current phase of this assessment includes outlining the process to develop a Climate Vulnerability Assessment for Maryland Agriculture. The vulnerability assessment will inform the subsequent development of adaptation strategies for Maryland agriculture in the face of climate-induced impacts and increase agriculture’s resilience to extreme weather events. This state-level assessment can enable a more focused examination of Maryland agriculture’s unique assets and the challenges the state’s farmers and foresters face in a changing climate.
Input from producers on the front line of changing conditions is needed to ensure that the vulnerability assessment is properly designed. Take our survey to inform this effort at go.umd.edu/CVAMA.