"The environmental impact of agriculture is the effect that different farming practices have on the ecosystems around them, and how those effects can be traced back to those practices."
Environmental issues in agriculture are of significant concern, including soil degradation, land use, water management, crop rotation, and crop protection. These issues affect the land and the environment, and understanding them is crucial for sustainable farming practices.
Sustainable agriculture: Principles of sustainable farming methods and practices that minimize environmental impact while maintaining productivity and profitability.
Climate change: Causes, effects, and potential impacts on agriculture and food security; policy responses to mitigate climate change and adaptation strategies.
Soil conservation: Best practices to minimize soil erosion, nutrient depletion and degradation; conservation tillage, crop rotation, and cover cropping strategies.
Water management and conservation: Best practices to optimize irrigation efficiency and minimize water use, water harvesting methods, and effective drainage systems.
Agroforestry: Integrating trees and shrubs into farming systems for increased productivity and environmental benefits.
Organic farming: Production methods that emphasize biodiversity, natural resource conservation, and minimize the use of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides.
Pesticides and herbicides: Types of chemicals used in farming, their environmental impacts, and potential risks to human health.
Agricultural policy: Government policies, regulations, and incentives that influence agricultural production and growth, trade, and food security.
Land use: Strategies to promote sustainable land use practices, utilizing mapping resources, quality land use, spatial analysis and planning.
Rural development: Economic and social challenges associated with agriculture, rural communities, and regional development programs.
Climate change: The gradual change in the Earth's climate system, primarily driven by human activity.
Soil erosion: The loss of topsoil due to natural or human-induced causes, such as overgrazing, deforestation, and land-use changes.
Water scarcity: The lack of available fresh water resources for human and environmental needs, caused by overuse, pollution, and climate change.
Desertification: The degradation of land in arid and semiarid areas due to human activities, such as overgrazing, deforestation, and unsustainable land-use practices.
Agricultural waste: The waste generated during production, processing, and distribution of agricultural products, such as pesticides, fertilizer runoff, and animal waste.
Deforestation: The removal of trees from an area without replanting, leading to habitat destruction, soil degradation, and loss of biodiversity.
Habitat destruction: The loss of natural ecosystems and habitats due to human activities, such as urbanization, deforestation, and mining.
Biodiversity loss: The decline in the variety of species, ecosystems, and genetic diversity, caused by habitat destruction, pollution, climate change, and overexploitation.
Air pollution: The release of harmful gases and particles into the atmosphere from industrial, agricultural, and transportation sources.
Genetic modification: The manipulation of the genetic material of plants and animals to enhance their productivity, disease resistance, and other traits, which may have unintended ecological and human health consequences.
"The environmental impact of agriculture varies widely based on practices employed by farmers and by the scale of practice."
"Farming communities that try to reduce environmental impacts through modifying their practices will adopt sustainable agriculture practices."
"Modern animal agriculture practices tend to be more environmentally destructive than agricultural practices focused on fruits, vegetables, and other biomass."
"The emissions of ammonia from cattle waste continue to raise concerns over environmental pollution."
"When evaluating environmental impact, experts use two types of indicators: 'means-based' and 'effect-based'."
"An example of a means-based indicator would be the quality of groundwater, which is affected by the amount of nitrogen applied to the soil."
"An indicator reflecting the loss of nitrate to groundwater would be effect-based."
"The environmental impact of agriculture involves impacts on a variety of different factors: the soil, water, the air, animal and soil variety, people, plants, and the food itself."
"Agriculture contributes to a number of larger environmental issues that cause environmental degradation including: climate change, deforestation, biodiversity loss, dead zones, genetic engineering, irrigation problems, pollutants, soil degradation, and waste."
"The international community has committed to increasing sustainability of food production as part of Sustainable Development Goal 2: 'End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture'."
"The United Nations Environment Programme's 2021 'Making Peace with Nature' report highlighted agriculture as both a driver and an industry under threat from environmental degradation."