Summarize, in Your own words (do not copy from the website) two of the methods f

Question

Summarize, in Your own words (do not copy from the website) two of the methods for sustainable agriculture from “Solutions: Advance Sustainable Agriculture: Using science-based practices, we can produce abundant food  while preserving our soil, air and water” including all hyperlinks used.

List one method that you think would work well in your local village/town/region. Why would it work well? Explain.

Please outline in your own words, one other new thing you learned this week in the course. How does it apply to your life?

Explanation / Answer

Agriculture must work in tandem with nature to be sustainable. Conservation practices play an important role in decreasing food safety risks on the farm reducing the movement of pathogens, nutrients, and pesticides into streams, rivers, and lakes. Conservation methods like windbreaks and hedge rows must be put in place to reduce the amount of dust and other airborne contaminates blowing onto produce fields. Preservation steps must be undertaken to reduce the need for toxic chemicals to control agricultural pests. Manures with antibiotics and artificial growth hormones contaminate water ways affecting plants to sustain. Salt damage soil if in excess and induce soil erosion. Nutrients and heavy metals like zinc, copper, chromium, arsenic, cadmium and like lead etc. excreted by animals contribute to sustainable growth of agriculture. Balancing act of these ate good for the soil but in excess damage soil fertility. Gases emitting from factories are also harmful for agriculture, especially gases like methane and hydrogen sulphide leading to global warming. This again lead to water pollution. Since soil is a mixture of minerals, air, water and organic compounds induced through roots decaying plant, fungi, earthworms, bacteria and microorganism degradation of any of these by gases or polluted water affects the top nutrient soil therby affecting agriculture.The vital living system for soil health is the capacity of soil to function, within ecosystem and land-use boundaries, to sustain plant and animal productivity, maintain or enhance water and air quality, and promote Agricultural best practices. An anthropogenic reduction of soil quality is detrimental for agriculture. Useful indicators of soil quality are: soil organisms respond, land management practices and climate. They are well correlated with beneficial soil and ecosystem functions including water storage, decomposition and nutrient cycling, detoxification of toxicants, and suppression of noxious and pathogenic organisms. Soil visible organisms such as earthworms, insects, and molds contribute to soil health for best agriculture sustainability. Knowledge of taxonomy measures soil health. Managing soil quality and health have incorporated abiotic and simple biotic indicators. The challenge for the future is to develop sustainable management systems which are the vanguard of soil health; soil quality indicators are merely a means towards this end.

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