Banner by Danny Huffman

Hydroponics and a Warming Climate

by Danny Huffman

Stronger hurricanes, melting glaciers, burning rainforests - we are in the midst of an environmental collapse that, scientists predict, will soon touch nearly all aspects of life on Earth. While much attention has been directed towards rising sea levels, melting ice caps, and other similarly iconic images associated with climate change, little focus has centered around its impact on one of humanity’s most basic needs: food.

Around the world, and especially in the Global South, hunger and undernutrition are tragically commonplace. Several research studies have projected that climate change will further lower crop productivity in these areas. By the 2050s, crop yields in Africa and South Asia alone have been projected to fall by eight percent. Already, countries such as Guatemala are suffering from unprecedented levels of famine stemming from climate change. Hindered by their intensive resource consumption and limited extent of arable land, traditional farming techniques are likely to fail in producing enough food for a rapidly growing population inhabiting a rapidly warming planet.

In fact, our predominant method of farming both contributes to and perpetuates the effects of climate change. Traditional agricultural practices involve tilling – the turning over of soil to impede the growth of weeds. Tilling not only fosters soil erosion and reduces water absorption, but also releases sizeable amounts of carbon dioxide stored within the soil. The carbon footprint of industrial farming is further compounded by the substantial quantities of fuel used by machinery and farm veh icles . Accordingly, the poor environmental standing of traditional agriculture, combined with its insufficient output, emphasizes the need for society to embrace new farming techniques to help stave off and better prepare for food shortages caused by climate change.

Of all the characteristics of traditional agriculture, perhaps the most fundamental is its use of soil. Soil may seem essential for growing crops, but water, along with nutrients typically found in soil, can serve the same function. This concept is utilized in hydroponic systems, which have been projected to play a crucial role in food production as climate changes worsens. In hydroponic systems, plants are held such that their roots make contact with an aqueous nutrient solution rather than soil. The method by which this occurs often varies among different hydroponics designs. In some designs, the plant roots are completely submerged in solution, while in others, the roots are held in a solid medium, such as gravel, and the solution is carried up to the roots by a mechanical pump or the capillary action of a wick. Moreover, the climate of the system is often controlled mechanically in order to provide the plants with optimal growing conditions, reducing transportation emissions by allowing for more produce to be grown locally, even in indoor and urban settings.

Unlike traditional agriculture, hydroponic systems are exceptionally scalable since they are capable of being stacked vertically to conserve horizontal space. Further, because the water in a hydroponic system can be recycled back into the system, hydroponic systems consume far less water than traditional farming methods, which require vast amounts of freshwater for irrigation. According to a 2015 study on the land, water and energy consumption of lettuce farming, hydroponics could produce over ten times higher crop yields, yet require less than a tenth of the amount of water compared to traditional farming methods. Thus, it is abundantly clear that hydroponics is a capable alternative to traditional agriculture.

Despite the obvious advantages hydroponics offers over traditional agriculture, there are several obstacles towards its widespread use. For one, the lighting and pumping necessary for hydroponics require a steep energy cost. In the aforementioned 2015 study, for instance, the energy requirements for the hydroponic lettuce farm were over 80 times as high as those for the traditional lettuce farm. When summed with the costs of the nutrients, water and other necessary components, the energy costs of hydroponic systems often serve as a financial barrier. Therefore, further refinement to improve the energy efficiency of hydroponic systems, as well as efforts to increase the availability of affordable, clean energy, will be crucial in promoting the widespread adoption of hydro ponics.

As recent global environmental tragedies make clear, the climate crisis is no longer just a looming threat for the future – it is already here. Society must collectively implement substantive changes to our habits of production and consumption to minimize or delay the worst consequences of climate change. Expanding usage of hydroponics worldwide could serve as one of these changes. The high yield and minimal water consumption of hydroponic systems could enable them to help mass produce food more efficiently and sustainably. Although the high energy requirements of hydroponic systems may serve as an initial barrier, improvements in efficiency, coupled with the proliferation of affordable renewable energy sources over time, could make hydroponics a more feasible alternative to traditional agriculture. Consequently, hydroponics carries immense potential in the face of food insecurity due to climate change and will likely serve a crucial role in our efforts to address it.