Agriculture and Environment
Chapter II.
Agriculture and the Environment
Agriculture can be defined as the science, and art, of
cultivating the soil, producing crops, and raising livestock.
Even relatively simple agricultural practices can greatly
increase the production of food, compared with the hunting
and gathering of wild animals and plants. Prior to the
development of agriculture, which first appeared around
10,500 years ago, perhaps 5-10 million people were able to
subsist through a hunting and gathering lifestyle.
Agriculture and the Environment
Today, the world supports an enormous population
(more than 7.3 billion in 2015), and almost all depend on
the agricultural production of food (fishing and hunting
also provide some food). Clearly, the development of
agricultural practices and technologies, and their
improvements over time, are among the most crucial of the
“revolutions” that have marked the socio-cultural evolution
of Homo sapiens.
Agriculture and Environmental
Externalities
Externalities generated by agricultural activity are both
beneficial and adverse. Two frameworks described in Chapter 2 of
the textbook are useful ways of marshalling ideas. The laws of
thermodynamics - and in particular the materials balance principle
- suggest that externality problems can be approached in terms of
physical and biological flows of inputs into agriculture, the
transformations of these inputs, and the destinations of flows of
various outputs. Many of the adverse external effects are associated
with the unintended (or uncompensated) outputs of agriculture.
Negative Externalities
Negative Externalities
Two categories of process dominate the literature
about agricultural activities. The first comprises the
consequences of the use of fertilisers, pesticides and
herbicides in farming, particularly in its more
„developed‟ or intensive form. The second concerns
opportunity costs associated with land use conversion
into agriculture. We may classify impacts by the
environmental medium affected.
A. Water Pollution
Water pollution is the contamination of water bodies,
usually as a result of human activities. Water bodies
include for example lakes, rivers, oceans, aquifers and
groundwater. Water pollution results when contaminants
are introduced into the natural environment.
A. Water Pollution
B. Air Pollution
Agricultural activity is also a large contributor to air
pollution. Principal pathways include the loss of nitrogen to
the atmosphere via denitrification and volatilization. Air
pollution is the presence of substances in the atmosphere
that are harmful to the health of humans and other living
beings, or cause damage to the climate or to materials. There
are different types of air pollutants, such as gases,
particulates, and biological molecules.
B. Air Pollution
C. Loss of Biological Diversity
Land conversion, expansion of the
agricultural frontier, and agricultural
specialization play contributory roles in
biodiversity loss. Biodiversity loss includes the
extinction of species worldwide, as well as the
local reduction or loss of species in a certain
habitat, resulting in a loss of biological diversity.
C. Loss of Biological Diversity
Positive Externalities
II. Positive Externalities
The externalities generated by agricultural activity are
not all adverse. Suggested beneficial externalities include
some consequences of drainage (such as malaria
elimination in Europe and North America) and the
conservation of land as a habitat for wild species (although
whether this is 4 in fact the case is no doubt very situation-
specific. The role of agriculture in the provision of
landscape amenity values is often remarked upon.
The externalities generated by agricultural activity are
not all adverse. Suggested beneficial externalities include
some consequences of drainage (such as malaria
elimination in Europe and North America) and the
conservation of land as a habitat for wild species (although
whether this is 4 in fact the case is no doubt very situation-
specific. The role of agriculture in the provision of
landscape amenity values is often remarked upon.
Crop Plants
Crop Plants
Almost all of the important agricultural crops have
been domesticated. Domestication refers to the
progressive modification of crops through the selective
breeding of cultivated races (or cultivars), which are
now genetically, anatomically, and physiologically
different from their wild ancestors.
Crop Plants
Crop plants have been selectively bred to increase
their yield and response to management practices and to
enhance their palatability. In some cases, thousands of
years of domestication have resulted in crop plants that
bear so little resemblance to their wild ancestors that
they are now incapable of maintaining themselves in the
absence of management by people.
Important domesticated food
plants include the following:
1. Small grains: barley
(Hordeum vulgare), maize
(corn, Zea mays), millet
(Panicum miliaceum), oats
(Avena sativa), rice (Oryza
sativa), sorghum (Sorghum
vulgare), wheat (Triticum
aestivum and T. durum).
Important domesticated food
plants include the following:
2. Legumes (pulses): broad bean
(Vicia faba), garden bean
(Phaseolus vulgaris), garden
pea (Pisum sativum), lentil
(Lens culinaris), peanut
(Arachis hypogaea), soybean
(Glycine max)
Important domesticated food
plants include the following:
3. Sweet fruits: apple (Malus domestica), banana (Musa
sapientum), grape (Vitis vinifera), grapefruit (Citrus
maxima), mango (Mangifera indica), orange (Citrus
sinensis), peach (Prunus persica), pear (Pyrus communis),
plum (Prunus domestica), raspberry (Rubus idaeus),
strawberry (Fragaria virginiana and F. chiloensis), sweet
cherry (Prunus avium), watermelon (Citrullus lanatus).
Important domesticated food
plants include the following:
3. Sweet fruits:
Important domesticated food
plants include the following:
4. Roots and tubers: beet
(Beta vulgaris), carrot
(Daucus carota), garlic
(Allium sativum), (Allium
cepa), parsnip (Pastinaca
sativa), potato (Solanum
tuberosum), radish
(Raphanus sativus), sweet
potato (Ipomoea batatas),
turnip (Brassica rapa)
Important domesticated food
plants include the following:
5. Vegetables: asparagus (Asparagus officinalis);
broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower (all varieties of
Brassica oleracea); celery (Apium graveolens);
lettuce (Lactuca sativa); spinach (Spinacia
oleracea)
Important domesticated food
plants include the following:
6. Edible oils: canola (or rape, Brassica napus), oil
palm (Elaeis guineensis), olive (Olea europaea),
peanut, soybean
Important domesticated food
plants include the following:
7. Sugar crops: sugar beet (Beta vulgaris), sugar cane
(Saccharum officinarum)
Important domesticated food
plants include the following:
8. Herbs and spices: chili pepper (Capsicum
annuum), mint (Mentha spp.), pepper (Piper
nigrum)
Important domesticated food
plants include the following:
9. Beverages: cocoa (Theobroma cacao), coffee
(Coffea arabica), cola (Cola acuminata), hops
(Humulus lupulus), tea (Camellia sinensis)
Management Systems
Management Systems
Various management practices and systems, which
vary greatly in their intensity, can be applied to the
cultivation of any crop plant (or to livestock). The
most intensive systems may involve cultivating a
monoculture (only one crop species) using a series of
such practices as tilling the soil, planting, applying
fertilizer and pesticide, and a harvest when the crop is
ripe.
Intensive Agricultural Systems
are typically used on relatively large farms
and they rely on specialized, fossil-fuelled
machinery (known as mechanization). Intensive
systems may also be used on smaller farms in
order to achieve higher production on a limited
area of land.
Extensive Agricultural Systems
Extensive farming or extensive
agriculture is an agricultural production
system that uses small inputs of labor,
fertilizers, and capital, relative to the land
area being farmed.
Extensive Agricultural Systems
Key practices for growing crop plants in intensively
managed systems include the following:
•selective breeding of crop varieties for higher yield, greater response to
management practices, adaptation to local climatic or soil conditions, and
resistance to disease or herbicide
•tilling the soil so that seeds can establish and to reduce competition from
weeds
•planting the crop at an optimal spacing, usually as a monoculture, to increase
productivity and the ease of harvesting
•applying inorganic fertilizer or organic matter (including animal dung) to
enhance the nutrient supply
•irrigating to enhance the availability of water
•controlling weeds by mechanical means (such as tillage) or by the use of
herbicide
Key practices for growing crop plants in intensively
managed systems include the following:
• controlling invertebrate pests using pesticide (most commonly insecticide or
nematicide), by introducing diseases or predators of the pests, or by managing the
habitat to make it less suitable for them
• controlling fungal pathogens by using fungicide or by managing habitat to make it
less suitable
• harvesting the crop biomass as efficiently as possible
• developing crop-rotation systems that maintain site quality and help prevent the
build-up of pests and pathogens
• using mechanized systems to till the soil, plant seed, apply fertilizer and pesticide,
and harvest the crop
• cultivating some crops, such as tomato and cucumber, in greenhouses
• developing so-called organic systems that maintain high crop yields while reducing
or eliminating the use of synthetic fertilizer and pesticide
Livestock
Livestock
Livestock are raised primarily as sources of
food. Livestock is commonly defined as
domesticated animals raised in an agricultural
setting to produce labor and commodities such
as meat, eggs, milk, fur, leather, and wool.
Livestock
Key practices for growing livestock under intensive management include the
following:
• selective breeding of varieties for higher yield and greater
response to management practices
• developing “tame” or converted (seeded) pastures to supply
fresh fodder, and hayfields for hay feeding, silage production, or
bedding
• feeding livestock with concentrated foods that are manufactured
from fish, slaughterhouse offal (meat “wastes”), pulses, and
other products, together with mineral supplements
• using antibiotics and other medicines to prevent or treat diseases
Key practices for growing livestock under intensive management include the
following:
• using growth hormones to increase production in certain
animals (particularly cows)
• killing natural predators of free-ranging livestock, such as bear,
cougar, coyote, and wolf
• confining livestock in dense feedlots or factory farms, with
feeding to satiation and other intensive husbandry practices
• developing organic systems that maintain high yields of
livestock, while reducing or eliminating such intensive practices
as close confinement and the routine use of medicines and
growth hormones
Environmental Impacts of
Agriculture
Declining Site Capability
Agricultural site capability (or site
quality) refers to the ability of an
ecosystem to sustain the productivity of
crops. Soil fertility is an important aspect
of this – it is related to the amount of
nutrients present and to factors affecting
their availability, such as drainage, tilt,
and organic matter in the soil. Site quality
can be degraded by agricultural practices,
which may result in the erosion of topsoil,
loss of organic matter and nutrients, and a
buildup of weed populations.
Declining Site Capability
These result in decreased crop yields, which
may then require intensive management practices
(such as fertilizer and herbicide application) to try
to compensate for the damage. Allowing site
quality to degrade is a non-sustainable use of
agricultural land.
I. Nutrient Loss
Nutrient depletion is a common problem with
agricultural systems, and it is most often treated by
applying inorganic fertilizer to the land. However, careful
attention to the conservation of organic matter and
nutrient content of soil can greatly alleviate nutrient
depletion and may even eliminate the need to add
inorganic fertilizer (we examine this later in the context
of organic agriculture).
II. Organic Matter
Soil organic matter is a crucial factor that
affects fertility and site capability. Organic matter
has a strong influence on the capacity of soil to
hold water and nutrients, and on its aeration,
drainage, and tilt.
III. Soil Erosion
Soil is eroded by wind and by the runoff of rain and
melted snow. Although erosion is a natural process, its
rate can be greatly increased by agricultural practices,
and this may be a serious environmental problem.
Erosion represents a loss of soil capital, which can
impoverish site capability and can cause deep gullying of
fields, a damage that is almost impossible to rehabilitate.
Erosion also damages aquatic ecosystems by increasing
sedimentation and turbidity, which are destructive of fish
habitat.
Agricultural practices that increase the
rate of soil erosion include the following:
• cultivating land on moderate to steep slopes
• ploughing furrows up and down slopes rather than
contouring along them
• leaving fields without a cover (such as stubble or a
cover-crop) during the winter
IV. Compaction
The frequent passage of heavy machinery, or the yarding of a
dense livestock population, can compress the air spaces in soil, a
condition known as compaction. Soil compaction is a serious
problem that results in waterlogging, oxygen-poor conditions,
impaired nutrient cycling, poor root growth, and decreased crop
productivity. Compaction can be largely avoided by avoiding any
unnecessary passages of heavy machinery over fields, using large
tires to spread the load, and reducing the density of livestock kept
in outdoor stockades.
V. Salinization
Salinization occurs when there are high concentrations
of salts in the soil, and the rate of evaporation exceeds the
water input from precipitation. These conditions bring
salts to the surface, where they are deposited as the water
evaporates. Irrigation practices can also be a cause of
salinization if insufficient water is added to allow
dissolved salts to drain to below the rooting depth of the
crop. Saline soil is toxic to most crops, largely because of
interference with the uptake of water, along with ion
imbalance and toxicity.
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VI. Pest Management
All agroecosystems have problems with pests.
In conventional agriculture, they are usually
managed using pesticides (but often within the
context of integrated pest management . Although
pesticides can reduce the effects of pests on the
yield of a crop, their use may cause environmental
damage.
Instead of synthetic pesticides, organic farmers rely
on other methods of pest management, such as the
following:
• using crop varieties that are resistant to
pests and diseases
• using biological pest management by
introducing or enhancing populations of
natural predators, parasites, or diseases
Instead of synthetic pesticides, organic farmers rely
on other methods of pest management, such as the
following:
• changing habitat conditions to make them less suitable for pests,
for example, by growing crops in mixed culture rather than
monoculture, by rotating crops or using a fallow period to avoid a
buildup of pest populations, and by using mechanical methods of
weed control such as hand-pulling and shallow inter-row
ploughing
Instead of synthetic pesticides, organic farmers rely
on other methods of pest management, such as the
following:
• undertaking careful monitoring of pest abundance, so control
tactics are used only when necessary
• using pesticides that are based on natural products, such as an
insecticide based on the bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis (B.t.)
that may be considered acceptable in organic agriculture, or one
based on pyrethrum extracted from a daisy-like plant, but not
their synthetic analogues, such as genetically engineered B.t. or
synthesized pyrethroids
