Agriculture Committee Faces Stress After Mt. Sinaburg Disaster

By Monica DeStefano
The Blue Print
on Agriculture:

On February 25, 2010 Mount Sinaburg on the Indoneisian island of Sumatra erupted. Although the U.S. currently faces no danger or devastation currently, the future of America’s agriculture and economy is at stake. Top climate scientists and volcanologists are urging attention at the amount of ash the eruption has sent out into the atmosphere, which is approximately 130 kilometers cubed. This number is dangerously close to the 160 kilometers cubed that was released into the atmosphere as a result of the 1815 eruption of Mount Tambora.

The ash release by Mount Tambora’s eruption caused the average global temperature to drop by 1 degree Fahrenheit. This seeming small drop resulted in the failure to produce crops in the world. This failure caused worldwide starvation, food riots, and disease epidemics. The U.S. State Department is advising preparations for long-term climate affects and crop failure throughout the country and the globe should be anticipated.

With the economy already hitting all time lows, the result of this disaster is going to greatly affect the commodities futures market when crop failure starts to take effect. The House Agricultural Committee is already trying to form a bill to help control the commodities futures market and how the final product bill turns out will have a huge impact on investors especially with worldwide famine waiting to take its toll.

Regulation is of the upmost importance with the impending hard times and the representatives should consider more regulations that safe guard the economy from failures that would devastate the U.S. In the fight to stabilize the economy, protecting the commodities futures market from a crash after this disaster is crucial to the future of American prosperity.

The agricultural committee will have troubling times ahead due to the climate and atmosphereic changes in consequence to the Mt. Samborg eruption.