Wildfires in Canada: An unexpected benefit

Colin Penner, a farmer who farms 3,700 acres about an hour north of the U.S. Border, crunched a handful of canola pods, and blew away the chaff in a stiff prairie wind. In his hand, a small pile of black seeds was left.

The harsh sun and high temperatures last summer scorched the yellow flowers of canola and destroyed their pollen. This led to lower yields in Western Canada. Smoke from nearby wildfires covered the skies in July and shielded Penner's young crops from the sun's rays. This resulted in more seeds and pods per plant.

He said, "Look at these pods." He will wait to see the harvest, but "smoke is likely to be a good thing."

Canola farmers are finding unexpected benefits from the summer skies, as long as it is in July when the crop flowers.

Smoke protects delicate canola flower petals and pollen from the intense heat and sun, reducing the impact of the drought that lasted for most of the summer.

Scientists believe that prolonged periods of heavy smoking have negative effects on food quality and crop yields.

We spoke with dozens of canola farmers and 10 crop specialists who all agreed that the midsummer smoky sky had mostly positive effects for the crop. However, the experts warned that further research was needed. Bruce Burnett, an analyst for the Western Producer Markets Desk, said that the cooling effect of smoke countered the high temperatures during the day and at night, which can harm the crop.

Canada is the largest canola producer in the world, with 21 million acres of land planted along Canada's vast forests. The seeds of canola are crushed and used to produce cooking oil, biodiesel, and animal feed.

Canola is a cool-climate crop that grows mainly in the northern plains of North America and Europe, as well as Australia. It does not tolerate heat. Heat can cause its pollen to melt, which prevents fertilization and seed formation. The harsh sunlight can cause flower petals to burn.

Curtis Rempel is vice president of the Canola Council of Canada's crop production and innovations.

He said that smoke can reduce temperature and reduce sunlight.

SCIENTISTS REVISE IDEAS ABOUT SMOKES

In 2022, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), a climate science panel of the United Nations, predicted that a warmer world and shorter winters will lead to more intense wildfire seasons. Canadian officials stated in August that the intensity and length of wildfires are increasing as winters get shorter and spring, summer, and fall become warmer.

Four crop experts said that smoke was probably the worst for North America's largest crops like corn and soya beans, as it reduces heat and sunlight, which plants require to grow. Smoke from wildfires in California has severely damaged wine grape production. The damage was severe both in 2017 and 2020. Researchers in Ohio found mixed results. Researchers found that while the smoke reduced temperatures and light, corn, soybeans and wheat yields reached their highest level in 10 years.

Raju Soolanayakanahally is a senior researcher with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. He said that the Canadian government will launch research on wildfire smoke's impact on canola and wheat.

Soolanayakanahally stated that despite farmers' claims of benefits for this year's crop, smoke could also slow down and weaken the development of crops. The haze may degrade chlorophyll, which is vital for photosynthesis, and decrease the efficiency of enzymes critical to plant development.

A review of the existing research into the effects of smoke in U.S. corn found that it had a largely negative impact. Mark Jeschke of Corteva Agriscience Pioneer Seeds, the author of the study and Agronomy manager, said that further research is needed to determine how airborne and ground-level smoke affects corn during its pollination and maturation. The timing of an event that causes stress can be very important.

Smoke-tainted wine was discovered in 2020 when over 8,000 fires spread across 4.3million acres of California. Most vineyards were spared direct damage. Vintners discovered that the grapes had produced a slurry with a foul smell and taste, rendering it unsuitable for making wine. The term "smoke-taint", which was used to describe the taint, became a part of wine lexicon.

According to the California Association of Winegrape Growers, up to 325,000 tonnes of wine grapes valued at more than $650 million were destroyed that year.

Researchers and the industry have been testing treatments that remove smoky components from fermented wine slurry. They also tested a spray to prevent grapes on the vine from absorbing smoke.

Natalie Collins, president of the California Association of Winegrape Growers said: "We have so much work to do."

(source: Reuters)