New models of economic growth are required. This debate is now becoming more mainstream but who would the lead-author turn to for a different approach? Tim Jackson and Steve Sorrell have put together a stream of quality research. In line with this thinking, Hertwich emphasised that success has to be measured by more than just economic indicators alone.
We may sometimes forget that economic growth is a means to an end, and should not be an end in itself. However, even in idealised Norway , consumption trends for meat and fossil fuel use are not always moving in the right direction. Incidentally, not withstanding human rights abuses against dissenters, at present the only country in the world that reaches the criteria for sustainable development according to the Global Footprint Network is Cuba.
When other energy costs of this form of food production are included -- such as those involved in producing farm machines, pesticides, herbicides, and fertilizers -- the fossil fuel expenditure becomes two and one-half times the caloric content of the foods produced. Transportation, processing, and packaging raise the ratio of expenditure to production to around six to one. Such fuel expenditures have been attractive to food producers on economic grounds, since the corresponding cash outlays have been lower than the cost of human labour.
As supplies of nonrenewable fossil fuels diminish, the economic advantage of fuel-intensive agricultural practices declines. And since such fuels are in only finite supply, these practices are not indefinitely sustainable. The agro-industrial policy of the government of the Netherlands has been criticized as unsustainable on several counts.
This small countries is the third largest agricultural exporter, with 10 percent of world agricultural exports. The industry is highly energy intensive, particularly due to the subsidies on natural gas for greenhouse production.
There is excessive use of pesticides, particularly in flower-bulb cultivation. Dutch livestock production causes an annual manure surplus of 40 million tonnes, responsible for over 60 percent of the acidification of the soil of the Netherlands and extensive eutrophication of freshwater ecosystems.
Many small scale farmers today practice sustainable agriculture, but they however struggle with poverty due to the pressure for low global commodity prices from large scale farmers. With the pressure from global markets and food insecurity, there has been need to increase production. Many farmers are planting crops on their entire pieces of land, leaving the land bare for soil erosion resulting from waterways from water runoff. As more and more land is heavily ploughed and cleared to create room for agricultural practices, the natural habitat is gradually destroyed and the other land is becoming increasingly degraded.
Such negative practices results to exposure of the top soil that is blown by wind or washed away by water or rain, erosion emanating from deforestation, sedimentation in water bodies and increased flooding. Raising livestock and plants separately, instead of carefully managing them together in a standard agricultural system. Naturally if they were kept together, no waste management would have been done, and crops should not require fertiliser or lack nutrients.
Most of the fertilizers used in industrial agriculture are made from petrochemicals and only supply three basic nutrients: nitrogen, phosphorous, and potassium. In the past few years, only few varieties of crops have been grown in the commercial space of agriculture.
This has resulted in loss of a few varieties and breeds leading to loss of genetic diversity. This becomes a problem because crops cannot adapt to changing environmental conditions and diseases. Other root causes of unsustainable agricultural practices resulting to degradation of the rural environment:.
Much of these chemicals ultimately end up in local water supplies. They also release harmful greenhouse gases into the air. Recent studies have shown that nitrate fertilizers can actually reduce organic matter in soil over time. The more that farmers rely on synthetic fertilizers , the more expensive their operat ion becomes.
Tillage serves a number of functions : it prepares seed beds, buries crop residue, levels soil, spreads nutrients, controls weeds, mixes in fertilizer, and more. When used excessively, however, it can start to create more problems than solutions. Prolonged tilling disrupts soil structure, reduces organic matter, and increases the likelihood of erosion. It also releases carbon that is otherwise sequestered in the ground. Eventually, excessive tilling can result in a complete breakdown of soil structure, leaving it essentially infertile.
In response to these growing problems, many farmers and ag companies are already taking action to improve soil health, reduce erosion, and protect surrounding habitats. Additionally, a number of bills are being proposed that could help incentivize and compensate farmers for implementing more sustainable practices in their farmland.
0コメント