What are the enviromental problems with Agriculture?

Question

pesticides and fertilizers?

Answer 1

If a genetic bomb was released into the cattle feed with a significant time delay ,it could in theory kill everyone in the planet. This could happen without modern agriculture ,however, with modern agriculture it would spread quicker .Cattle and sheep are a major component of the Apocalypse.

Answer 2

The big issues are oil, fertiliser and pollution. There are lots of ways that the environment could be affected but those are the worst.

Answer 3

No,the main problem is human greed,in the form of ever increasing profit. To make a decent living farmers have to satisfy the buyers, ie supermarkets, and to do this they have to abuse the land. If people were happy with scabby potatos and marked apples etc a lot of the problems would go away.

Answer 4

First off, the largest agricultural related "pollutant" is soil, both in water and air.  Nutrients and pesticides are way, way behind that.  

Yes, nutrients do cause excessive growth of aquatic plants and when those plants die and decompose, use up oxygen from the water.  This can cause fish kills.  Bear in mind that agricultural fertilizers are only one part of nutrient loading in waterbodies.  Also know that on a per acre basis, the average urban homeowner or golf course uses many times more fertilizer, herbicides and insecticides than does the average farmer.  All three of those products are very expensive and to think farmers apply so much that it runs off is ludicrous.  Much nutrient loading is caused by municipal effluent (human sewage), home sewage systems, construction sites and urban runoff.

As far as commercial fertilizers or pesticides ruining the soil is also ridiculous.  In the 19th century southern US, continous cotton farming with no added fertilizer did deplete the soil and turned it brick hard and with low productivity.  After the advent and use of commercial fertilizers, that same soil is now productive and fertile.

It's true that in the US, the insecticide DDT did get into fish, which eagles eat and cause them to lay thin shelled eggs which broke before hatching.  However, without DDTto kill mosquitoes, most of Central and northern South America would be still be a malaria ridden jungle devoid of people.  Say what you want about the stuff, it has and still does (it's still in use in many countries) save human lives.  Since it was banned in the US in the '70s, I've yet to hear of any human, animal or environmental disasters attributed to DDT use.  

I certainly don't like using pesticides and avoid it whenever possible, but there are times when it is a necessity.  If I don't use deworming medication on my sheep, they die in droves from anemia, so I do.  On occasion I used insecticides to kill alfalfa weevil, if I don't, the weevil kill my alfalfa and my sheep have nothing to eat during the winter and they in turn die.  Others use insecticides to kill blister beetles in alfalfa.  If not, when horses eat hay with the beetles in it, the horses die.  Get the idea?  

People need to know all the facts before jumping to conclusions about things they know nothing about.

Answer 5

Any and all agriculture changes the environment. That may not necessarily be bad as long as the attempt is made to limit any damage and maintain or improve the dynamics of the environment. We have a huge population to feed and for a long time we used chemical and mechanical tools to accomplish this without knowing the long term effect. We didn't even foresee a long term effect. We now understand that all agricultural chemicals, which are short cuts to manipulate and facilitate the growing of food plants, have by their very nature an immediate and far reaching effect. That effect is for the most part quite negative with respect to the environment. The water that all land life needs becomes contaminated and leaves less each year that is of a quality to sustain us. The contamination is found in all parts of the hydrological cycle and no place on the planet is left untouched. The impact to the soil and the cycles of the constituents of that soil are all disrupted. Nitrogen and carbon cycle, the water cycle where it meets the soil, all the flora and fauna from large to microscopic, all are affected. The mechanical impact on that soil further hurts its ability to sustain life and causes it to erode by wind and water in the processes of desertification. Production of chemicals used in agriculture have a negative effect not only in our waterways but in the air and land with products/ byproducts that are expensive and hard to detoxify or "lose". They frequently require other questionable precursors like petroleum bases and toxic heavy metals. Chemical warfare and insecticides share a common laboratory heritage. That is why there has been such a great deal of research and transition to sustainable and organic approaches to agriculture. We look to preserve what we have and repair what we have damaged and still meet the supply and demands of production.

Answer 6

yo mama

Answer 7

1.Pesticide residues and biomagnification

2. Nitrification of water and even subsurface water due to excess fertilizers.

3. Pest resergance and outbreak.

4. Damages to fish, honey bee, microfouna etc.

5. Heavy metal accumulation by some crops like cabbage which leads to health problems.

3.

Answer 8

The problem is really huge but in main is run off of pesticides, fertilizers, not to mention the really really really long list of other things that are in run off that pollute the water that you and i drink.  Also the soil itself is being sucked dry of all its nutrients and its getting harder and harder to even maintain the soil enough to even grow anything.  Its really amazing just how fragile the ecosystem is for something that's soo enormous and at times for most point chaotic.  For more possible info check out www.motherearthnews.com

Answer 9

Pesticides cause runoff into local streams and rivers or possibly into groundwater.  Pesticides also cause the insects they are used against to become resistant over time, in a way creating a "super" insect that could be immune to many different pesticies.

Fertilizers can cause a  surplus of nitrogen and phosphorus  in rivers and lakes.

Answer 10

The environmental problem with agriculture is that whenever someone tries to grow something that will help people around the world be able to eat and the world to be more productive, healthier and better off in general, some environmental nut job comes out and launches a multi-million dollar campaign to stop it and to ensure society never makes any progress. for example, pesticides pose no major problems to people or the environment, yet when DDT gets used, environmentalists thrash around like toddlers about how bad it is. They tend to use zero evidence and like to be very angry and judgmental. so the biggest environmental problem with agriculture is exactly that - the environmentalists.

Answer 11

Fertilisers... These can leak into rivers and cause algae to grow on the surface. This means the plants in the rivers have no light and die and rot. The animals die to because they eat the plants so everything rots and it stinks. There is a specific name for it but I've forgotton.

Pesticides... When bugs and stuff eat the plants they get pesticides in them. When the birds eat the bugs the pesticide accumulates inside them and can harm them. The cats and things that eat the birds will have an even higher concentration of pesticide so it can harm them.

Answer 12

I must say the fertilizers and pesticides have a short life span. it breaks down is a short period of time. they aren't like the old time ones. this is a better way of farming and healthier, however there is still the problem of washing it into our water shed. ( underground water that eventual will seep into streams, lake and rivers don't forget oceans.  One thing to keep in mind is when you go to the grocery store and buy that Delicious good looking perfect fruit that is why we use fertilizers and pesticides.