Natural disasters and security planning
Infrastructure is a lifeline system that ensures a country carries out economic and social activities smoothly. Disruption of critical infrastructures will directly lead to luxation of the social-economic chain, which in turn, result in poor development. In the US, agriculture and food is the nation’s weakest link because it is most vulnerable to natural disasters. According to Nelson et al. (2016), disasters such as storms, floods, and droughts have risen in severity and frequency over the past few decades, which has damaged agricultural sectors of various countries in the world, including the United States. The damage of agricultural sector puts the country at risk of food insecurity. A study by Conforti, Ahmed and Markova(2018) also found that climate-related disasters in the US have affected fisheries, livestock, crop, and forestry, which in turn, has led to negative economic impacts. Additionally, extreme weather events impact agriculture and food sector heavily; thus, hampering the achievement of sustainable development in the country.
Flooding is the major catastrophic event posing the greatest threat to agriculture and food sector. In the US, flooding the most common natural disaster, which impacts both communities and individuals, and have environmental, economic, and social consequences (Englhardt, Biemans, Winsemius& Ward,2019. Although its consequences can be both positive and negative, these impacts vary greatly depending on the value and vulnerability of constructed and the natural environment they affect, and the extent and location of flooding. Flooding in agricultural areas causes widespread damage to fencing and crops as well as the loss of livestock. Crop losses through waterlogged soils, rain damage, and delays in harvesting due to damaged infrastructure and flooded roads, also affects agriculture and food production. Flooding also damages other critical infrastructure such as shipping ports, road networks, and rail networks, which agriculture greatly depends on (Englhardt et al., 2019).On the other side, flooding can be beneficial to agricultural production because t recharges water resources storage, especially in inland and drier areas. Although floods have both positive and negative effects, negative effects outweigh the positive ones; thus, floods are harmful to the economy of the United States.
References
Conforti, P., Ahmed, S., & Markova, G. (2018). impact of disasters and crises on agriculture and food security, 2017.
Englhardt, J., Biemans, H., Winsemius, H., & Ward, P. J. (2019, January). Flood Impacts on Agricultural Production-A Global Analysis. In Geophysical Research Abstracts (Vol. 21).
Nelson, M. C., Ingram, S. E., Dugmore, A. J., Streeter, R., Peeples, M. A., McGovern, T. H., … &Spielmann, K. A. (2016). Climate challenges, vulnerabilities, and food security. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 113(2), 298-303.