Food and floods

The document examines how agricultural land management in the Argentinean Pampas affects shallow groundwater and flooding. It finds that the shift from perennial alfalfa pastures to annual wheat-soybean-maize rotations has reduced annual transpiration rates from 1200 to 800 mm/year, leading to shallower groundwater tables and a significant increase in flooding events. The text argues that planting water-logging tolerant pastures or cover crops can reduce waterlogging frequency and increase the number of years suitable for farming by 40%.

• The transition from perennial alfalfa pastures to annual wheat-soybean-maize rotations in the Argentinean Pampas has reduced average annual transpiration rates from 1200 mm/year to 800 mm/year.
• Simulation data indicates that perennial pastures maintain deeper groundwater tables (average -4.4 m compared to -2 m for annual crops) and result in significantly fewer flooding events (2 events versus 47 events over a 100-year period).
• A flood event occurring between 1997 and 2003 affected 27% of the western Pampas, driven by an average groundwater level rise of 2.3 meters, resulting in substantial economic losses.
• Implementing the use of cover crops or pastures tolerant to water-logging, such as ryegrass or alfalfa, during high-risk periods can increase the number of years suitable for farming by 40% and reduce waterlogging frequency.

APA

Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (2010). Food and floods. https://iai.int/admin/site/sites/default/files/uploads/2014/06/snapshot7_EN.pdf

Chicago

Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research. Food and floods. 2010. https://iai.int/admin/site/sites/default/files/uploads/2014/06/snapshot7_EN.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research |title=Food and floods |date=2010 |url=https://iai.int/admin/site/sites/default/files/uploads/2014/06/snapshot7_EN.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{interamericaninstituteforglobalchangeresearch2010food, author = {{Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research}}, title = {{Food and floods}}, institution = {Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research}, year = {2010}, url = {https://iai.int/admin/site/sites/default/files/uploads/2014/06/snapshot7_EN.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }