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The environmental impact of agriculture is the effect that different farming practices have on the ecosystems around them, and how those effects can be traced back to those practices. [1] The environmental impact of agriculture varies widely based on practices employed by farmers and by the scale of practice.
The equipment employed in land farming is typical of that used in agricultural operations. These land farming activities cultivate and enhance microbial degradation of hazardous compounds. As a rule of thumb, the higher the molecular weight (i.e., the more rings within a polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon ), the slower the degradation rate.
Agricultural science – broad multidisciplinary field that encompasses the parts of exact, natural, economic and social sciences that are used in the practice and understanding of agriculture. Agricultural economics – originally applied the principles of economics to the production of crops and livestock – a discipline known as agronomics.
Currently, increased land degradation in developing countries may be connected with rural poverty among smallholder farmers when forced into unsustainable agricultural practices out of necessity. [63] Converting big parts of the land surface to agriculture has severe environmental and health consequences.
Sustainable agriculture – applied science that integrates three main goals, environmental health, economic profitability, and social and economic equity. These goals have been defined by various philosophies, policies, and practices, from the vision of farmers and consumers.
Indirect emissions on the other hand come from the conversion of non-agricultural land such as forests into agricultural land. [232] [233] Furthermore, there is also fossil fuel consumption for transport and fertilizer production. For example, the manufacture and use of nitrogen fertilizer contributes around 5% of all global greenhouse gas ...
It also encompasses what is known as “associated biodiversity”, the vast range of organisms that live in and around food and agricultural production systems, sustaining them and contributing to their output." Agriculture is understood to include crop and livestock production, forestry, fisheries and aquaculture. [12]
Agricultural productivity is an important component of food security. [4] Increasing agricultural productivity through sustainable practices can be an important way to decrease the amount of land needed for farming and slow environmental degradation and climate change through processes like deforestation. [5]