Enviro Sci - Ch. 8.1 - 8.3

Our agricultural gains have led to ______________ costs. Heavy fertilizer use can boost crop production, but also leads to ______ blooms and eutrophication. Pesticides reduce crop infestation, but are often _____, which poses a threat to ______ and __________ heath.

• environmental

• algal

• toxic

• human, ecosystem

In the 1940s, there was a coordinated global effort to _________ food scarcity.

1. We started using ___-________ seeds, bred to grow faster, larger, resist disease.

2. Modern farm _________ and methods made farming more efficient.

3. New chemical _________

4. Synthetic _________, such as nitrogen (not just using manure).

• eliminate

• High-yielding

• Machinery

• Pesticides

• Fertilizers

The ______ Revolution took place between the 1940s and 1960s. It resulted in a _____% increase in food production and a __% reduction in famine. We produced enough food to feed the planet, quantity wise. By the end of the Revolution, the world population had almost doubled to __ billion people

• green

• 1000%

• 20%

• 4 billion people

Farming changed to follow a more __________ model, rather than mimicking natural ecosystems. The farm is viewed as a _______, requiring inputs and producing outputs. ___________ is a key goal for any factory.

• industrial

• Factory

• Efficiency

Industrial crop farm:

Inputs include things like - ______, ______ pesticides, herbicides, ________, energy, and machinery

Outputs include mostly grains - ______, ____, ____, soybeans, and oats.

• water, seeds, fertilize

• wheat, corn, rice

Efficiency demands larger fields, larger machinery, more chemicals, and specialization in one crop, called a __________. These are easier to plant, maintain, and ______. This makes mass production _____.

• monoculture

• harvest

• easier

A factory farm:

Inputs include - young animals such as calves, _______, ______, grain feeds, _________, water, confinement buildings, and energy.

Outputs include - _____ products, ____, _____, and hides.

• piglets, chicks, antibiotics

• dairy products, eggs, meat, hides

Efficiency demands larger numbers of animals, larger ______ or lots, very _____ quarters, and specializing in one type of ________.

• buildings

• Close

• Animal

Fertilizers increase __________ and are often required for ___ yield crop varieties. BUT the ______ from fields can cause _____ blooms.

• productivity

• High

• Runoff

• Algal

Fertilizers can help crops grow in areas that that might not otherwise support __________. BUT the soil can then become ________ of other nutrients or develop a ________ on fertilizer.

• agriculture

• Delegated

• Dependency

Both _______ and ______ can build tolerances for chemicals, which makes them less effective. This can lead to _______ selection, with the selective ______ being the pesticide. The surviving individuals become more and more resistant to the __________.

• pests, weeds

• Natural, pressure

• Pesticides

As the wealth or (GDP) of a country _______, the overall consumption of _____ increases. This forces the creation of more ______ farms. These farms also produce massive amounts of waste - can contaminate ___ and ___________, as well as contributing to carbon buildup in the atmosphere due to ________ production (from animals).

• increases

• Meat

• Factory

• Soil, groundwater

• Methane

Factory farms require a lot of ______ and ____ to operate. We grow crops for people, but we also grow crops for _______.

• water, feed

• Animals

Food conversion rates show how much _____ product we get from the food an animal is fed. What is the worst animal for this? Some food crops also need a lot of water, such as ______.

• usable

• Beef

• almonds

Pre-emptively using antibiotics, which promotes ______ and prevents ______, can also lead to antibiotic-resistant strains of _________. This occurs a lot in the USA, but in Canada, antibiotics are only used on ____ animals with a vet prescription.

• growth, disease

• Bacteria

• Sick

In monoculture farming, crops are often not _____ which depletes soils and results in food of ______ nutritional value.

• rotated, lower

Food has become a global commodity, instead of a _______ produced good. Food travels on average _____ km food miles before reaching consumers.

• locally

• 2,400 km

A lifecycle analysis looks the energy _____ and _____ involved in production, processing, ________ and _________ food.

• input, output

• Packaging, transporting

Nearly a ______ people are either underfed or malnourished. This is largely because of what?

• billion

• Types of food grown or uneven distribution of resources

We are currently farming almost all of the ________ land we have. This may or may not be enough to feed a population of ___ billion.

• available

• 10

Tactics we can use:

• crop _________ (changing out the type of crop you are growing every few _____)

• Reduced ________ (not breaking up the soil as much - reduces soil ______ and water needs)

• _____ cropping (alternating different crops in sections, which reduces ____ populations)

• _____ crops (planting a crop that holds the ____ in place over the winter)

• rotation, years

• Tillage, erosion

• Strip, pest

• Cover, soil

Integrated Pest Management:

1. Identify the ____ pests

2. Set an action _________ and monitor pests

3. Develop an action ___

Why would you want to do this?

• true

• Threshold

• Plan

• To limit use of chemical pesticides

Pest reduction (which is hierarchical):

1. Cultural (eg. _____ cropping)

2. Mechanical (eg. ______ to keep out birds or rabbits)

3. Biological (eg. Introducing ______ or plants that ____ the pest)

4. Chemical (this should be a ____ resort!)

1. Strip cropping

2. Netting

3. Predators, repel

4. Last

Green Revolution 2.0 (aka the _____ Revolution)

• the genes are usually transferred from one _____ to another, which creates a _______ organism

• This allows plants to produce the ______ themselves, that makes them more resistant

• Gene

• Species, transgenic

• Toxin

Types of GMOs:

• Bt crops (_____ to pests)

• __________ tolerant

• Nutritionally _______ (such as putting extra beta carotene in _______ ____ to reduce blindness in children)

• Animals (eg. ___ growing salmon, or pigs with high _____-3 fatty acid)

• toxic

• Herbicide

• Enhanced

• golden rice

• Fast, omega

In Canada, more than ___ % of our food contains GMOs. What plants are most common (3)?

• 70%

• Corn, soybean, canola

Using perennials instead of ________ for plants like _____. We can also integrate more _____ into our crop production, reducing pests.

• annuals

• Wheat

• Animals

An integrated duck and loaches (fishes) farming method, can help what crop to grow? These animals helped to keep the _____ in check. This is considered a _________, rather than a ________.

• rice

• Azolla

• Polyculture, monoculture

What were some of the benefits from having an integrated duck/fish/rice farming method?

• no dependence on pesticides and herbicides

• More products to sell

• Larger rice harvests per plant

• Yields increase by 20-50%

Organic agriculture - farmers:

Pros:

• less _____ inputs

• Soil not ________

• Beneficial _______

• Greater ______ diversity

• Less _____ pollution

Cons:

• ________ intesive

• Requires more __________

• Fewer __________

• Not all crops will grow in all _____

• costly

• degraded

• insects

• genetic

• water

• labour

• certifications

• subsidies

• areas

Organic agriculture - consumers:

Pros:

• no ___________ residue

• More ___________

• Fresher - can _____ better!

• No ________

• Ethical ______ treatment

Cons:

• product may be _________

• Shorter _____-____

• More _________

• pesticide

• antioxidants

• taste

• hormones

• animal

• imperfect

• shelf-life

• expensive

With organic farming, you tend to get higher _____, have to put out ____ energy input, and there is less greenhouse gas ______.

• profit

• Less

• Output