Climate Change in Eastern Europe

Agriculture and food security

Riga

Agriculture is an important component in the economies of Eastern Europe. It has the potential to become globally important. The sector employs about 17% of the working population of Eastern Europe (10% in Belarus, 17% in Ukraine and 33% in Moldova). Agriculture contributes between 9 and 15% to national GDP. Rising temperatures are likely to have a favourable effect on the development of agriculture in Belarus and in the north of Ukraine. At the same time, Moldova and southern parts of Ukraine will experience a negative impact with the provision of water, already a problem, becoming more acute. It is also predicted that natural hazards will become more frequent in the Polesie, Prykarpattya and Zakarpattya regions. Over the last decade, catastrophic floods and high water have become the main threat to normal human activity in these areas.

LATVIA

Moscow

LITHUANIA

Vilnius

R U S S I A

Minsk

Warsaw

B E L A R U S

POLAND

Kyiv

U K R A I N E

Chisinau

R O M A N I A

MOLDOVA

Bucharest

BULGARIA Climate change impacts on agriculture Decreased yield of winter wheat Increased yield of winter wheat, potato and corn Increased yield of potato Decreased yield of early spring crops Possibility of growing cotton Decreased sugar content and reduced grape harvest for table wine Possible droughts

Map produced by ZOÏ Environment Network, July 2011 Sources: Fifth National Communication of Republic of Belarus, 2009; Fifth National Communication of Ukraine, 2009; Second National Communication of Republic of Moldova, 2009.

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