food_security_ozone_climate_policybrief-100b140cd111c65c.pdf

This policy brief by the Stockholm Environment Institute examines the impact of ground-level ozone (O3) on agricultural productivity and food security in South Asia. It argues that O3 is a significant threat to crop yields, potentially posing a more immediate risk to food security than climate change, and calls for international cooperation to reduce precursor emissions and improve crop breeding.

• Ground-level ozone (O3) is currently reducing crop yields by 5% to 35% at key agricultural sites across South Asia. A synthesis of data for three staple crops shows yield losses ranging from 5–48% for wheat, 3–47% for rice, and 10–65% for legumes.
• The economic impact of O3 on four staple crops (wheat, rice, soybean, and potato) in the Malé countries—Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka—is estimated at approximately US$ 3.9 billion annually. India suffers the highest losses at US$ 3.1 billion, followed by Bangladesh (US$ 0.4 billion) and Pakistan (US$ 0.35 billion), primarily within the Indo-Gangetic Plain.
• O3 may be a more immediate threat to food security in South Asia than climate change, as current yield losses from O3 (5-35%) exceed the projected losses from climate change by the end of the century (up to 30%). Additionally, O3 may limit the CO2 fertilization effect that could otherwise mitigate temperature-induced stress.
• South Asia is projected to experience the highest increase in surface O3 of any global region over the next 20 to 30 years, with average annual increases of 7.2 ppb by 2030 under current emission control legislation.
• Existing dose-response relationships used for risk assessments, derived from the United States and Europe, may underestimate the sensitivity of crops and varieties grown under Asian conditions, leading to an underestimation of actual damage.
• Reducing O3 precursor emissions (nitrogen oxides and volatile organic compounds) offers substantial co-benefits because O3 is the third most important greenhouse gas and negatively affects human health.

APA

Stockholm Environment Institute (n.d.). food_security_ozone_climate_policybrief-100b140cd111c65c.pdf. https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/Climate/food_security_ozone_climate_policybrief.pdf

Chicago

Stockholm Environment Institute. food_security_ozone_climate_policybrief-100b140cd111c65c.pdf. n.d. https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/Climate/food_security_ozone_climate_policybrief.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Stockholm Environment Institute |title=food_security_ozone_climate_policybrief-100b140cd111c65c.pdf |url=https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/Climate/food_security_ozone_climate_policybrief.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{stockholmenvironmentinstitutendfoodsecurityozoneclimatepolicybrief100b140cd111c65cpdf, author = {{Stockholm Environment Institute}}, title = {{food\_security\_ozone\_climate\_policybrief-100b140cd111c65c.pdf}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, url = {https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/Climate/food_security_ozone_climate_policybrief.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }