Maize yield suitability mapping in two major Asian Mega-Deltas using AgERA and CMIP6 climate projections in crop modeling

Asian Mega-Deltas (AMDs) are important food baskets and contribute significantly to global food security. However, these areas are extremely susceptible to the consequences of climate change, such as rising temperatures, sea-level rise, water deficits/surpluses and saltwater intrusion. This study fo...

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Autores principales: Upreti, Deepak C., Villano, Lorena, Raviz, Jeny, Laborte, Alice, Radanielson, Ando M., Nelson, Katherine M.
Formato: Journal Article
Lenguaje:Inglés
Publicado: MDPI 2025
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://hdl.handle.net/10568/174456
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author Upreti, Deepak C.
Villano, Lorena
Raviz, Jeny
Laborte, Alice
Radanielson, Ando M.
Nelson, Katherine M.
author_browse Laborte, Alice
Nelson, Katherine M.
Radanielson, Ando M.
Raviz, Jeny
Upreti, Deepak C.
Villano, Lorena
author_facet Upreti, Deepak C.
Villano, Lorena
Raviz, Jeny
Laborte, Alice
Radanielson, Ando M.
Nelson, Katherine M.
author_sort Upreti, Deepak C.
collection Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace)
description Asian Mega-Deltas (AMDs) are important food baskets and contribute significantly to global food security. However, these areas are extremely susceptible to the consequences of climate change, such as rising temperatures, sea-level rise, water deficits/surpluses and saltwater intrusion. This study focused on maize crop suitability mapping and yield assessment in two major AMDs: the Ganges Delta, spanning parts of northeast India and Bangladesh, and the Mekong Delta across Vietnam and Cambodia. We investigated the historical climate reanalysis AgERA datasets and climate projections from the Coupled Model Intercomparison Phase 6 (CMIP6) for the periods 2040–2070 and 2070–2100 using PyAEZ-based modeling to estimate maize yields for periods in the near (2050s) and far future (2100s). Province-level yield estimates were validated against statistics reported by the governments of the respective countries. Model performance varied across regions, with R2 values ranging from 0.07 to 0.94, MAE from 0.67 t·ha−1 (14.2%) to 1.56 t·ha−1 (20.7%) and RMSE from 0.62 t·ha−1 (14.6%) to 1.74 t·ha−1 (23.1%) in the Ganges Delta, and R2 values from 0.23 to 0.85, MAE from 0.37 t·ha−1 (12.8%) to 2.7 t·ha−1 (27.2%) and RMSE from 0.45 t·ha−1 (15.9%) to 1.76 t·ha−1 (30.9%) in the Mekong Delta. The model performed comparatively better in the Indian region of the Ganges Delta than in the Bangladeshi region, where some yield underestimation was observed not accurately capturing the increasing upward trend in reported yields over time. Similarly, yields were underestimated in some provinces of the Mekong Delta since 2008. This may be attributed to improved management practices and the model’s inability to fully capture high-input management systems. There are also limitations related to the downscaling of CMIP6 data; the yield estimated using the downscaled CMIP6 data has small variability under rainfed and irrigated conditions. Despite these limitations, the modeling approach effectively identified vulnerable regions for maize production under future climate scenarios. Additionally, maize crop suitability zones were delineated, providing critical insights for planning and policy design to support climate adaptation in these vulnerable regions.
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spelling CGSpace1744562025-12-08T10:29:22Z Maize yield suitability mapping in two major Asian Mega-Deltas using AgERA and CMIP6 climate projections in crop modeling Upreti, Deepak C. Villano, Lorena Raviz, Jeny Laborte, Alice Radanielson, Ando M. Nelson, Katherine M. crop production climate change food security agricultural policies sustainable agriculture yield forecasting farming systems water stress temperature Asian Mega-Deltas (AMDs) are important food baskets and contribute significantly to global food security. However, these areas are extremely susceptible to the consequences of climate change, such as rising temperatures, sea-level rise, water deficits/surpluses and saltwater intrusion. This study focused on maize crop suitability mapping and yield assessment in two major AMDs: the Ganges Delta, spanning parts of northeast India and Bangladesh, and the Mekong Delta across Vietnam and Cambodia. We investigated the historical climate reanalysis AgERA datasets and climate projections from the Coupled Model Intercomparison Phase 6 (CMIP6) for the periods 2040–2070 and 2070–2100 using PyAEZ-based modeling to estimate maize yields for periods in the near (2050s) and far future (2100s). Province-level yield estimates were validated against statistics reported by the governments of the respective countries. Model performance varied across regions, with R2 values ranging from 0.07 to 0.94, MAE from 0.67 t·ha−1 (14.2%) to 1.56 t·ha−1 (20.7%) and RMSE from 0.62 t·ha−1 (14.6%) to 1.74 t·ha−1 (23.1%) in the Ganges Delta, and R2 values from 0.23 to 0.85, MAE from 0.37 t·ha−1 (12.8%) to 2.7 t·ha−1 (27.2%) and RMSE from 0.45 t·ha−1 (15.9%) to 1.76 t·ha−1 (30.9%) in the Mekong Delta. The model performed comparatively better in the Indian region of the Ganges Delta than in the Bangladeshi region, where some yield underestimation was observed not accurately capturing the increasing upward trend in reported yields over time. Similarly, yields were underestimated in some provinces of the Mekong Delta since 2008. This may be attributed to improved management practices and the model’s inability to fully capture high-input management systems. There are also limitations related to the downscaling of CMIP6 data; the yield estimated using the downscaled CMIP6 data has small variability under rainfed and irrigated conditions. Despite these limitations, the modeling approach effectively identified vulnerable regions for maize production under future climate scenarios. Additionally, maize crop suitability zones were delineated, providing critical insights for planning and policy design to support climate adaptation in these vulnerable regions. 2025-03-31 2025-05-07T08:48:59Z 2025-05-07T08:48:59Z Journal Article https://hdl.handle.net/10568/174456 en Open Access application/pdf MDPI Upreti, Deepak C., Lorena Villano, Jeny Raviz, Alice Laborte, Ando M. Radanielson, and Katherine M. Nelson. "Maize Yield Suitability Mapping in Two Major Asian Mega-Deltas Using AgERA and CMIP6 Climate Projections in Crop Modeling." Agronomy 15, no. 4 (2025): 878.
spellingShingle crop production
climate change
food security
agricultural policies
sustainable agriculture
yield forecasting
farming systems
water stress
temperature
Upreti, Deepak C.
Villano, Lorena
Raviz, Jeny
Laborte, Alice
Radanielson, Ando M.
Nelson, Katherine M.
Maize yield suitability mapping in two major Asian Mega-Deltas using AgERA and CMIP6 climate projections in crop modeling
title Maize yield suitability mapping in two major Asian Mega-Deltas using AgERA and CMIP6 climate projections in crop modeling
title_full Maize yield suitability mapping in two major Asian Mega-Deltas using AgERA and CMIP6 climate projections in crop modeling
title_fullStr Maize yield suitability mapping in two major Asian Mega-Deltas using AgERA and CMIP6 climate projections in crop modeling
title_full_unstemmed Maize yield suitability mapping in two major Asian Mega-Deltas using AgERA and CMIP6 climate projections in crop modeling
title_short Maize yield suitability mapping in two major Asian Mega-Deltas using AgERA and CMIP6 climate projections in crop modeling
title_sort maize yield suitability mapping in two major asian mega deltas using agera and cmip6 climate projections in crop modeling
topic crop production
climate change
food security
agricultural policies
sustainable agriculture
yield forecasting
farming systems
water stress
temperature
url https://hdl.handle.net/10568/174456
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