Organic Farming Destroying The Environment?
I think this post is just rubbish. It quotes Norman Borlaug, an advocate of the use of synthetic fertilisers:
Perhaps the most eminent critic of organic farming is Norman Borlaug, the father of the “green revolution”, winner of the Nobel peace prize and an outspoken advocate of the use of synthetic fertilisers to increase crop yields. He claims the idea that organic farming is better for the environment is “ridiculous” because organic farming produces lower yields and therefore requires more land under cultivation to produce the same amount of food. Thanks to synthetic fertilisers, Mr Borlaug points out, global cereal production tripled between 1950 and 2000, but the amount of land used increased by only 10%. Using traditional techniques such as crop rotation, compost and manure to supply the soil with nitrogen and other minerals would have required a tripling of the area under cultivation. The more intensively you farm, Mr Borlaug contends, the more room you have left for rainforest.
It’s fine to say that synthetic fertilisers increase crop production. They do. In the short term. However, in the long term, this isn’t a sustainable method of farming. The use of pesticides, herbicides, and fertilisers, kills pretty much everything except the crop itself. The result is poor soil with no beneficial micro-organisms and nutrients. This means to maintain the same level of crops each year the farmer needs to use more fertilisers. Mono-cropping also increases the risk of disease and as some insects become immune to certain pesticides, more and varied sprays will need to be used on crops further reducing soil quality and again increasing the need for more fertilisers. This is not sustainable in the long term.
There is also no mention on the pollution all these chemicals use. Runoff from farms enters our lakes, rivers, and other waterways, polluting them. There is no question about this. Look at the algal blooms you see in many rivers, killing off fish and everything else living in the water. This is mainly attributed to fertilisers used in the local area.
What about the harm these chemicals are doing to the people using them? The World Health Organisation reports that around 20,000 people die each year due to chemicals used on cotton farms alone. It’s also likely that the high number of cancers seen in children in Canada’s Prince Edward Island is the result of pesticides used on local potato crops.
Organic farming is better for the environment. It produces less pollution, encourages varied wildlife, and promotes healthy soil.
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