How can sustainable agriculture practices mitigate climate change and ensure food security and role of agriculture in environmental sustainability?
Through the adoption of sustainable agriculture practices, we can mitigate climate change by reducing GHGs' emissions and enhancing carbon sequestration, ensuring food security through improved soil health, water management, and resilient crop varieties, and promoting environmental sustainability by preserving ecosystems, reducing pollution, and enhancing biodiversity. By integrating these practices, we can mitigate climate change, make agriculture sustainable, and have food security. Sustainable agriculture can be vital in building a resilient and sustainable future.
First, mitigation and adaptation are two different approaches for dealing with climate change in agriculture. Since you mentioned mitigation of climate change by way of sustainable agriculture, I will attempt to address that. It's important to understand the role of plants and trees in 'scrubbing' Co2 from the atmosphere. If we understand this, then intuitively, planting more trees and plants mitigates climate change. But, harvesting trees and plants does not. So, permaculture by way of diverse crop and fruit/nut/bean tree plantings are likely helpful in mitigating climate change. Combining permaculture varieties, 'cash crop'/harvester plants, plus livestock rotations on a single farm would likely solve a number of issues related to the agricultural industry's contribution to climate change as well as help reduce the risk of fire hazards, essentially through a form of agroforestry. There are certain varieties of hemp plants, (not necessarily cannabis), that sequester carbon from the atmosphere much better than a stand of trees does).
Much of the mitigation aspect of climate change through agriculture that I'm proposing requires some research and of course, a 'captain's log' or grow journal.
Please excuse me, I forgot to mention that when planting diverse permaculture crop trees among forest trees or not, they should be planted in a circle and fenced with accessibility options available to livestock. A circular perimeter fence should be erected to keep livestock within the circular area. Theoretically, (based on Temple Grandin's effective circular corral designs and theory regarding large grazing animal husbandry), this will distribute animal excrement more uniformly over the grazing/rotational cash crop area when feed/water bins are placed in the four cardinal directions as a result of the movement of the sun and resulting shade from the trees. It should also reduce stress to livestock.
You're welcome! Regrettably, I am not a doctor. I am still a non-traditional Student at nearly 50 years old in my final year of studies. I am working towards a double major in Agricultural Science and Sustainability. Most of my knowledge comes from experience, observations, and general interest on topics related to sustainable agriculture and autism especially as it applies to spatial design and awareness through observations. Thank you for asking a great question!
Rk Naresh
Debra Koonohiokala Norenberg
Purna P. Chapagai
Sustainable agriculture can fight climate change and boost food security by using eco-friendly practices like crop rotation and reduced pesticide use. For example, no-till farming can cut soil erosion by up to 90%. Agriculture is key for the environment, as it covers about 40% of Earth's land and can either harm or help our planet depending on how it's managed.
When we state sustainable agriculture practices, we mean that it is about crop diversification, row-cropping systems, rotational grazing management, integrated pest management, minimum tillage, biodegradable pots, water harvesting schemes, animal manure, improved fallow management, farm waste recycling, biological processes and so on. These practices have been implemented using on-farm and locally available natural resources, as well as on the basis of farmers’ skills, experience and knowledge. They have multiple economic, social or environmental benefits, for example, the practices have expanded natural resource base, improved the water table, decreased carbon dioxide emissions, reduced fuel use, decreased land degradation and so forth. They are directly or indirectly related to enhancing food security or decreasing the risks of the negative effects of climate change.
Soil carbon storage: Practices such as no-till farming, using organic fertilizers, and growing grass crops can enhance the soil's ability to store carbon, reducing greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.
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