Reduction in Need for Irrigation in Agriculture

Today, freshwater water is quickly becoming one of the most sought after resources especially for agriculture. In arid climates irrigation and the ability to maintain hearty crops are intimately intertwined and many cultures in these dry climates survive solely on their ability to produce a strong crop. Agriculture is often difficult there because droughts strike without notice and cause the ultimate demise of a farmer's livelihood. A recent study has been performed on the application of silicon to agricultural fields. This type of fertilizer should reduce the need to supplement droughts with irrigation, ultimately reducing the amount of freshwater used in agriculture.

In Africa and Asia, sorghum (Sorghum bicolor), a type of cereal grass, is an important crop and is greatly effected by low amounts of rainfall. Studies in the past have been conducted on some crops in order to find a way to increase the uptake of water with the application of fertilizers. Nitrogen has been added to soybeans ultimately increasing its drought tolerance. Phosphorus has been applied to sorghum, bean, and white clover changing their root characteristics and ability to uptake water. Drought tolerance in pearl millet and hibiscus have been increased by the addition of potassium to their agricultural fields. Antioxidant activity has been increased in liquorice by the addition of calcium. While all of these nutrient fertilizers are nutrients essential for growth, researchers were in search of an additional nutrient that could increase drought tolerance. Ultimately, scientist named silicon as the nutrient in question and aimed to discover if it had drought avoidance characteristics for sorghum.

In the past, silicon was proven to accumulate in endodermal tissue of sorghum and rice. These results of previous studies suggest that silicon plays an important role in water transport or root growth in drought conditions. This study was conducted on two different cultivators or sorghum that had different drought susceptibility. The conclusion of the study proved that when silicon was added to sorghum in drought conditions, the harmful effects of the drought were reduced and when it was added during wet conditions, no changes were seen. When silicon was applied to sorghum in drought conditions, the plants could extract a larger amount of water from dry soil and maintain a high stomata conductance.

The discovery of a nutrient that is not essential to growth which increases the ability of a plant to uptake water could prove to be important in agriculture. While fertilizers added to fields often drain into waterways and cause algal blooms ultimately creating dead zones in important water systems, silicon would not. Further, this nutrient could help to reduce the need for excessive amounts of irrigation to occur on agricultural fields in arid climates and even temperate climates. Research is continuing to be conducted on this new method of field fertilizer application and the results could prove to be important for water conservation and agriculture.

Wheat Genetic Gain Leveling Off

Wheat has been an important part of American history for years. It is a key food in the diets of many and is a very flexible and reliable food source. Recent study has found that wheat is no longer genetically diversifying like it used to. The genetic adjustments that had increased wheat yield in the past, has nearly come to a standstill. Farmers are now having issues trying to figure out how to more effectively breed and produce wheat to feed our ever - growing population.



With nearly 68 million metric tons of wheat harvested every year in the U.S., it is vital to find a new way to increase and expand this amount. The article mentioned that there are two possibile ways to do this. The first way is to change farming practices. Farmers would have to increase harvested produce. The second way is to breed wheat in a way that it becomes mature at desired times and fights against fungal infections.

With geneticist research, it has been discovered that genetic gain has been slowing since the 1980s, and has now halted. What is the reason behind all of this? Pathogens are a main contributor to the standstill. They are evolving more rapidly than breeders can keep up with and are getting out of control. Outside of the research, another geneticist had blamed genetic bottlenecks for the plateau in genetic gain. To increase yield, "dwarfing" genes were breed so that the plants could use more energy to produce grain. This is good in the short run because it gives more produce at a faster rate. In the long run though, non-dwarf varieties have been discarded and pushed aside which has greatly restricted the gene pool. A similar bottleneck has also been observed when choosing varieties that are resistant to particular pathogens. This ignores other varieties that are not so resistant.

So why not directly alter the DNA of wheat to program it to grow effectively and increase crop yields? It's not that easy. The wheat genome is very complex and the people do not like the sound nor are they open to genetically modified foods. Although the halt in wheat improvement is declining and is a concern, it is not yet a major issue. Until GMOs are more acceptable, better producing practices are the key to making more wheat.

Source: http://news.sciencemag.org/sciencenow/2010/08/has-wheat-peaked.html?ref=hp

Wind Generating Electricity.. Who would have thought?

In the past, there have been several efforts to come up with different ways to harness energy from other sources and to turn it into usable energy. Wind farms are used to capture wind energy and turn it into other forms of usable energy. These wind farms have seen a big push lately to find newer, more efficient ways to use the wind energy to generate electricity. Turbines, which look like huge fans, are used to generate electricity using wind energy.


One study looked at the ways that the massive turbines can be arranged so that they can have more efficient use of the wind energy. They took a look at the spacing and placement of the turbines and determined the more efficient ways to place them. They were trying to determine how far apart the turbines should be placed in light of not only cost efficiency but also of efficient energy generation. The placement of these turbines would help to bring more energy from higher altitudes and to generate more wind movement so that more wind energy can be used to generate electricity.

This research could be very important for future wind farms and how they are set up. It is important that people not only look at cost efficiency but they also look at the most effective way to use the wind energy to generate electricity. This was one of the main goals of this study. The researchers also suggested further studies on the effects of temperature on these wind farms and how temperature differences could affect efficiency.

Source: Science Daily

Eating insects 'could cut greenhouse gas emissions'

A little girls asks her mom, "what's for dinner tonight?" Her mom answers, "How about crickets?" While you may expect to hear this in a developing country, there is a chance you may one day hear this in your own house.
Researchers are looking at the possibility of farming insects such as crickets, locusts, and cockroaches for food. According to the researchers, this new dining menu could ease both climate change and food insecurity. Farming of the insects on a large scale has far less damage on the environment. The emissions of cattle and pigs versus insects was studied. Scientists looked at the greenhouse gases methane and nitrous oxide because these have a greater warming effect than carbon dioxide. The ammonia production, which harms the environment by acidifying the soil and water, was also measured. Insects emitted 80 times less methane than cattle when compared weight for weight. Crickets emitted 8-12 times less ammonia than pigs.
According to the lead author of the study, 80% of the world's population dines on insects. Mealworms, locusts, and crickets are consumed all over the world. Cockroaches and sun beetles, which people do not eat, are a great source of protein and are being included in the study. The co-author of the study, Arnold van Huis, is encouraging insects as an alternative to cattle because "I don't think we can continue eating beef like we did in the past and the FAO has already predicted that in 2050 it will become so expensive no-one [will be able to] pay for it any more."
Critics point out that the farming of insects is subject to seasonal variation and therefore may only be farmed in a few countries. Monica Ayieko, a family and consumer economist at Maseno University, said "the 'Westernisation' of diets could pose an obstacle to encouraging consumption." Another critic worries that raising insects on a large scale is just inviting disaster. "If such insects are reared in millions and if they escape into nature, the entire world would face hunger."

Source: http://www.scidev.org/en/climate-change-and-energy/fossil-fuels/news/eating-insects-could-cut-greenhouse-gas-emissions-.html

Sustainable Agriculture

Sustainable farming is a way to meet the needs of people today while ensuring the ability for future generations to meet their needs as well. Air, water, land and animal resources are being negatively affected by current industrial, large-scale farming practices. Sustainable farming offers a way for large scale operations to change their practices to preserve these essential natural resources for the future. In order for a farm to be considered sustainable it must have the following characteristics: conservation and preservation, biodiversity, animal welfare, economically viable, and socially just.

Conservation and preservation are the two facets of sustainable agriculture that are most often thought of. These practices involve taking natural resources from the land and then putting them back in. A large component of this is keeping animal manure in the area it was produced and making sure that it does not pollute the area. In large production farms, manure is mixed with water and held in lagoons. From these lagoons, the manure water is transported and sprayed onto cropland. By spreading manure onto fields, farmers are also spreading heavy metals such as zinc, copper, chromium, arsenic, cadmium, and lead. Concentrations of these heavy metals will cause farmland to become unproductive, the land will be put out of use and wasted. Further, manure often leaks from the holding lagoons and carries antibiotics, heavy metals and growth hormones with it into nearby waterways. This pollution causes an imbalance in local streams and ponds and can cause loss of biodiversity in these precious areas.

While manure is a large component of pollution, methane gas and hydrogen sulfide are excreted in large amounts from farms. These gases have been attributed to increasing the effects of global warming. Other chemical misuse includes overuse of pesticides, which leak into waterways, and the excessive use of water. Large scale farms are depleting the fossil waters in many western states which has led to less water for households. Finally, cropland is being depleted by farms only producing one type of soil. When the nutrients are depleted from the soil, more chemicals are added to the soil to replenish them. Instead of constantly depleting the soil and artificially replenishing it, rotating crops to add nutrients through natural processes can be completed. Sustainable farming supports farming that removes all of the negative effects listed above and instead works to farm in a way that is harmonious with the environment.

It is important to maintain biodiversity in sustainable farming because it preserves resources for future generations. By maintaining biodiversity natural processes such as pest control by natural predators, pollination, decomposition, and strong genetic diversity will survive. There has been a large decrease in the numbers of domestic breeds and crop diversity because the genetic diversity has also decreased. A example of this is the potato famine that occurred during the 1840s. Potatoes of only one variety were farmed and when a fungus hit, all of the crop was destroyed. By interbreeding animals to increase the amount of meat on their bodies, their genetic code is becoming less and less diverse. This decrease in diversity is causing weaker species and causing many breeds to die out. If we continue to interbreed domestic animals, it is possible that future generations will have less and less animals to work with. It is a dangerous practice. Pollution from large scale farms is also dangerous and causing a decrease in biodiversity for future generations. Sustainable farming works to maintain genetic diversity by having different breeds on farms and works to lower pollution.

The final three components of sustainable farming include being kind treatment of animals, economically viable, and socially just. Kind treatment of animals supports keeping animals in good living conditions, transporting them safely, and humane slaughtering. Economics of large farms compared to large farms in supporting local communities is very different. Large farms make much more money than small farms but only 20% of their money is put back into local communities while large farms put 95% in. Further, large farms have a large output per worker while small farms have a higher output of crops per acre. The final facet of sustainable farming is social justice. Those farms that are sustainable have competitive salaries for their employees and provide them with good working and living conditions. Sustainable farming is a practice that can be, and should be, attained by both small and large farms in order to provide the ability for the needs of future generations to be met.

Effects of Global Warming on Agriculture

We already know several impacts of global warming on the environment. These include the melting of polar ice caps (increasing sea level), an increase in the amount of precipitation on a global level and the effects these events have on animal populations. A recent study found that if carbon emissions and greenhouse gases are not substantially reduced, then a serious decline in crop productivity will be seen. From the article, there seems to be a significant difference in expected effects to developing countries versus rich countries. Rich countries tend to have lower average temperatures where developing countries tend to have higher average temperatures. As these temperatures increase, they rise above crop tolerances making it very difficult to grow a sufficient amount of food. For example, India already has an average temperature of 27 degrees Celsius (80 degrees Fahrenheit), and with that temperature expected to rise in the next 50 years it is not ideal for growing crops. Experts predict a 30-40% decrease in productivity in India alone. Overall agricultural productivity for the entire world is projected to decline 3-16% in the next 50 years if the levels of greenhouse gases continues to rise as it is now.

So along with global warming comes increased temperatures which will potentially cause a decrease in crop output. To combat this we need better agriculture technology and techniques to offset the climate change. Many things need to be considered when trying to use technology to solve this problem. First, the demand for food is going to continue to increase as the global population increases. Second, crops are used for other things besides food sources. We've already seen the effects of using grain for bio-fuels instead of food. So with additional investment into crop production the effects of climate change can be managed, however, the additional technology used will cost more money which will increase the cost it takes to grow the food. So either way we're going to see an increase in crop prices.

For more information of the causes and effects of climate change:

http://www.youtube.com/user/survivingearth?feature=pyv&ad=7884247417&kw=climate%20change#p/u/0/CV6KAVaXWlQ

Source: http://www.cgdev.org/content/article/detail/14404

Clean Streets and Intact Road Surfaces Help to Keep the Air Clean

It is well known that cars are a main cause of atmospheric pollution. However, the emissions coming from your tailpipe aren’t always the biggest contributor. When the weather situation favors the creation of winter smog, tailpipe emissions account for less than half of the fine particulate pollution from your car. The majority of this pollutant is produced by mechanical wear and resuspension of dust due to air turbulence from passing vehicles.
The fine particle matter released by combustion processes, and mechanical wear, and that thrown up again swirling air can no longer move into the higher layers of the atmosphere, with the result that the concentration at ground level increases. Working together with the Road Engineering / Sealing Components Laboratory, the atmospheric specialists developed a new measuring method using Empa's Traffic Load Simulator. This machine is normally used to investigate the time-accelerated resistance to wear of road surfaces under extreme load conditions.
The results of the study showed that in urban area debris from vehicle brakes contributes about 20% of the fine particle emissions from road traffic because of the regular nature of traffic flow. Damaged roads surfaces, on the other hand, can result in quite high fine particle emission levels. What this means is that keeping roads as clean as possible and in good repair makes a significant contribution to reducing the problem of fine particulate emissions.

Refernces
Empa. "Clean streets and intact road surfaces help to keep the air clean." ScienceDaily 1 February 2011. 1 February 2011 .