00:00Did you know that extreme floods are taking a heavy toll on rice production worldwide,
00:04cutting global rice yields faster than previously expected?
00:08Now, everybody knows that rice is a staple food.
00:11But you must also remember that rice feeds over half of the world's population.
00:16So when floods threaten rice crops, the consequences can ripple out to millions, even billions of people.
00:23Now, recent research from Stanford University has revealed something alarming.
00:27Between 1980 and 2015, intense flooding caused an average loss of about 4.3% in global rice yields each year.
00:36Now, that's roughly 18 million tons of rice lost annually due to severe floods.
00:42And the situation has worsened since 2000 as extreme flooding events have become more frequent in major rice growing areas.
00:51Now, you might wonder why is flooding so damaging to rice crops?
00:55Well, it's true that rice plants need water, especially shallow-standing water early in their growth.
01:00But when rice fields are submerged underwater for too long, like at around one week or more, the plants can die.
01:08The researchers call these instances rice-killing floods.
01:12Prolonged full submergence causes most rice plants to perish because they cannot survive without oxygen.
01:18Some of the hardest-hit rice growing regions include parts of India like West Bengal and the Sabur Mithi Basin, China's East Coast, North Korea, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Nepal.
01:30For instance, losses on China's East Coast can reach up to 14% during these flood events.
01:36Meanwhile, in some hot and dry basins, floods might actually help rice yields by providing much-needed water that evaporates quickly without long-term damage.
01:47But these are exceptions rather than the rule.
01:50What makes this even more concerning is the link to climate change.
01:54Now, scientists combined information about rice growth stages and will global rice yields,
01:59a worldwide database of droughts and floods dating back to 1950,
02:03a model of how floods behave across landscapes,
02:05and a simulation of soil moisture levels over time in major rice-growing river basins.
02:10Now, as the planet warms, scientists project that the most intense week of rainfall in key rice-growing basins
02:17could increase by 13% or more compared to past averages.
02:22Now, this means that rice-killing floods are likely to become even more common in coming decades.
02:27So, what can be done to protect this vital crop?
02:31Now, one promising solution lies in flood-resistant rice varieties.
02:35For example, the Swarna sub-1 variety in India can survive complete submergence for up to 2-3 weeks,
02:43protecting farmers from losses during flood years.
02:47Now, this breakthrough in agricultural science offers hope to many communities reliant on rain-fed agriculture,
02:55facing unpredictable and extreme weather.
02:58However, the challenge goes beyond floods.
03:00Rice crops are also vulnerable to droughts, heat waves, and the rapid swings from dry to wet conditions.
03:07Now, these combined climate stresses can nearly double yield losses compared to single events alone.
03:14Developing comprehensive strategies that include resilient crop varieties and improved water management
03:20will be key to securing global rice production.
03:24The threat posed by extreme floods to rice farming is real and growing.
03:29With billions depending on rice as a dietary staple,
03:32understanding, preparing for, and adapting to these flood risks must be a global priority.
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