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Agricultural change
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Over the last thirty years agricultural change in the economically developing world has been closely related to population growth. There has been an urgent needto increase food production to feed the increasing population. Some countries have responded with high-tech solutions; others have preferred a low-techapproach. Whatever the approach, the pressure to produce more food has often caused serious damage to the environment.
In the economically developed world, recent agricultural change has most often been due to government policies. In the 1970s and 1980s the European Union (EU) policies favored expanding food production. This caused huge economic problems through overproduction and it was also ruinous for the environment. As a result, policies in the 1990s have shifted. Now, the emphasis is put on reducing food production and protecting the environment.
The EU has made great efforts to reduce the output of farming. Indirectly this will also benefit the environment. In 1984 milk quotas were introduced to limit production in dairy farming, and since 1988 arable farmers have been paid to grow nothing! By taking 15 to 18 per cent of their arable land out of production for at least 5 years, they receive compensation of around £250 per hectare per year. By 1995, 13 per cent of all arable land in the UK lay unused and the EU's food mountains were drastically reduced.
Since 1992 the level of price support per tone for crops has been reduced. Gradually price support is being replaced by fixed payments for each hectare cultivated. This should make it less attractive for farmers to get more from each hectare cultivated. The result - lower inputs of fertilizers and pesticides - should benefit the environment.
Various schemes, providing grants to farmers, have been devised to improve the countryside. In the UK, for example, local authorities pay farmers to plant new hedges and improve existing ones. A farm woodland scheme gives annual payments for planting trees on arable and grassland. In these areas farmers are paid to farm using traditional methods. They are not allowed to use chemical fertilizers; they can cut hay or silage only after certain dates each year. In return, farmers are paid up to $600 per hectare per year.
In some areas farmers are paid compensation by the British government for farming with lower levels of nitrates. Again this reduces farming intensity. Grants are also available to help farmers convert farmland to other activities such as golf courses, camp sites, theme parks and so on.
Some farmers have turned to organic farming. It is farming without using any artificial fertilizers or pesticides. The result is that each hectare produces less and the products cost more for the consumer to buy. Although the products of organic farming are more expensive, many customers will pay more for them because they contain no harmful chemicals. Organically grown crops are also attractive because they are produced by a sustainable system, which does not damage the environment.
Дата публикования: 2014-11-29; Прочитано: 682 | Нарушение авторского права страницы | Мы поможем в написании вашей работы!
