Sustainable Agriculture

There is some question as to whether anything can actually be sustainable but the term has provided resource-conserving ideas to strive towards.

When discussed at Congress in Washington DC(Government Printing Office, Washington,DC 1990) sustainable agriculture was defined as "an integrated system of plant and animal production practices having a site-specific application that will, over the long term:

• Satisfy human food and fiber needs.
• Enhance environmental quality and the natural resources based upon which the agricultural economy depend.
• Make the most efficient use of nonrenewable resources and on-farm resources and integrate, where appropriate, natural biological cycles and controls.
• Sustain the economic viability of farm operations.Enhance the quality of life for farmers and society as a whole."

Ecological Concerns

Industrial farming has negative effects on soil productivity as well as the loss of organic matter in soil. Desertification is particularly a problem in many parts of Africa due to overgrazing.

Agriculture is one of the most damaging causes of water pollution. Fertilizers, pesticides, manure and more are all found in most nations’ water. This eventually causes “dead zones” in oceans, rivers, lakes and oceans. This then affects agriculture, drinking water supplies and fishery production.

Another environmental concern created from overuse of pesticides is the fact that over 400 insects and more than 70 fungal pathogens are now resistant to many pesticides.

People are becoming more aware of how agriculture affects global climate change. The destruction of forests creates more green houses gases as well as elevated carbon dioxide levels.

Economic Concerns

There is a widening disparity in what individual farmers earn and they have very little control over their prices as the government dictates much of them. Because of these economic pressures, many have lost their farms. From 1987 to 1997, more than 155,000 farms were lost in the US. This makes it much harder for people to shop for produce locally. Presently less than 2% of Americans now produce food for all the US.

Health Concerns

Some farmers have been poisoned from the many chemicals used while farming. Water and food can become contaminated from pesticides and nitrates. Overuse of antibiotics has resulted in some human and animal diseases becoming immune to antibiotics.

Many farmers are practicing sustainable farming practices, which can make a difference on the environment such as:

• Rotating crops and providing alternative sources of soil nitrogen that helps reduce soil erosion and contaminated water.

• Using biological pest controls and resistant cultivars whenever possible. Biological pest controls have been used successfully by introducing friendly insects to control the pests.

• Increasing mechanical and biological weed control. Some natural enemies of weeds that have been successfully used include fungal products, insects and even fish.
• Water conservation methods also help ensure that agriculture can continue successfully as well as keep the drinking water safe.

• Strategic use of animal manure is also important as improper disposal or storage of manure simply adds to more pollution.

While the definition of sustainable agriculture is controversial, most agree that our resources need to be conserved as much as possible. With the world’s population growing, long-term food security is becoming even more important especially in developing countries.

Sources: Sustainable Agriculture: Definitions and Terms(Special Reference Briefs Series no. SRB 99-02 Updates SRB 94-05, September 1999)

Sussex Farm

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