Page 289 - Environment: The Science Behind the Stories

shows how working with nature rather than against it can pro-
duce success in agriculture.
Treating agricultural systems as ecosystems is a key
aspect of sustainable agriculture, and this general lesson
applies regardless of location, scale, or the crop involved.
Southern Mexico’s organic coffee farmers promote an
ecosystem approach by letting insect pests be eaten by birds,
spiders, and other insects, rather than chemically poisoning
all of them and their soil as well. Coffee-growers practicing
shade-grown techniques, in which coffee bushes are grown
under a partial canopy of trees, enhance this sustainable eco-
system model further. Likewise, Mexico’s traditional maize
farmers who cultivate native landraces are preserving and
promoting the genetic diversity that typifies natural systems.
Efforts like these, together with other approaches farmers
around the world are taking to help make agriculture sustain-
Figure 10.30 Ducks help rice crops grow in a sustainable able, will be crucial for all of us as we progress through the
agricultural system developed in Japan, known as the coming century.
aigamo method.

Conclusion
Besides ducks, Furuno raises fish in the paddies, and these
provide food and fertilizer as well. He also lets the aquatic fern Many practices of intensive commercial agriculture exert sub-
Azolla cover the water surface. This plant fixes nitrogen, feeds stantial environmental and social impacts. At the same time,
the ducks, hides the fish, and provides habitat for insects, plank- it is important to realize that aspects of industrial agriculture
ton, and aquatic invertebrates, which provide further food for the have helped to relieve certain pressures on land or resources.
fish and ducks. Because fast-growing Azolla can double its bio- Whether Earth’s natural systems would be under more pres-
mass in 3 days, surplus plant matter is harvested and used as cat- sure from 7 billion people practicing traditional agriculture or
tle feed. The end result is a productive ecosystem in which pests from 7 billion people living under our modern industrialized
and weeds are transformed into resources, and which yields model is a very complex question.
organic rice, eggs, and meat from ducks and fish. From 2 hec- What is certain is that if our planet is to support 9 billion
tares of paddies and 1 hectare of organic vegetables, the Furunos people by mid-century without further degrading the soil,
annually produce 7 tons of rice, 300 ducks, 4000 ducklings, and water, pollinators, and other resources and ecosystem ser-
enough vegetables to feed 100 people. At this rate—twice the vices that support our food production, we must find ways to
productivity of the region’s conventional farmers—just 2% of shift to sustainable agriculture. Approaches such as biologi-
Japan’s people could supply the nation’s food needs. cal pest control, organic agriculture, pollinator conservation,
Takao Furuno wrote a book to popularize the “aigamo preservation of native crop diversity, sustainable aquaculture,
method,” and today over 10,000 Japanese farmers are using it, and likely some degree of careful and responsible genetic
increasing their yields 20–50% and regaining huge amounts modification of food may all be parts of the game plan we
of time they used to spend manually weeding. The approach will need to set in motion to work together toward a sustain-
is now spreading to other Asian nations. Furuno’s approach able future.

Reviewing Objectives

you should now be able to: • We can work toward sustainable agriculture in a variety of
ways. (p. 266–267)
Explain the challenge of feeding a growing human
population Identify the goals, methods, and consequences of the
Green Revolution
• Our food production has outpaced our population growth, yet
870 million people still go hungry each year. (pp. 263–264) • The Green Revolution aimed to enhance agricultural pro-
ductivity in developing nations. (p. 265)
• Undernutrition, overnutrition, and malnutrition are all
challenges to a goal of food security. (pp. 263–264) • Scientists used selective breeding to develop crop strains
that grew quickly, were more nutritious, or were resistant
• Growing crops for biofuels can result in food shortages and to disease or drought. (p. 265)
288 price increases. (p. 266)

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