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Sustainable Agriculture Sustainable Agriculture by Paul F. O'Connell, Deputy Administrator, Cooperative State Research Service, USDA, Wasliington, DC In the United States, as in other many positive aspects of today's industrialized countries, farming agriculture. practices are being reexamined. The unforeseen costs of con- Consumers of food and fiber, ventional agriculture include not many farmers, and various envi- only these environmental issues, ronmentalists are expressing con- but also the economic risks and cerns about how modern losses experienced by a great agriculture is being practiced. many farmers during the early Agriculture should welcome 1980's, when foreign demand for this increased interest. Modern U.S. farm products stagnated and agriculture has done a tremen- land values plunged. A few years dous job of providing high-quality ago, "sustainability" was seen as and reasonably priced food for consumers. All you have to do is visit any supermarket to realize the tremendous variety of prod- ucts available. One of the first things Eastern Europeans look for when they visit the West is the broad selection of food supplies available. But changes can be made to re- spond to health and safety issues, such as persistent soil erosion and a loss of natural soil productivity; contamination of ground water by agricultural chemicals; pesticide residues in food; growing resis- tance to pesticides by insects and other pests; loss of genetic diver- Neil Eash and Aaron Steinwand, ARS research sity; depletion of irrigation water associates, examine a soil core sample. Samples will be analyzed to see tiow nitrates and other supplies; aggravated salinity; and nutrients are distributed, and to locate carbon the loss of fish and wildlife habi- accumulations from decaying organic matter. tat. Improvements in these areas Lowell Georgia/USDA 89BW1229-10 can occur without disrupting the Agriculture and the Environment 175 an environmental issue, but the plant and animal production prac- economic questions that grew out tices having a site-specific appli- of the farm financial crisis of the cation that will, over the long last decade expanded the defini- term: satisfy human food and fi- tion to include an economic com- ber needs; enhance environmental ponent. While the circumstances quality and the natural resource surrounding that situation were base upon which the agricultural unusual, the future could bring economy depends; make the most similar shocks, such as a cutoff of efficient use of nonrenewable re- petroleum or a jump in costs of sources and on-farm resources petrochemical-based inputs as and integrate, where appropriate, global supplies dwindle. natural biological cycles and con- Different people have different trols; sustain the economic viabil- viewpoints on these issues. For ity of farm operations; and example, in the case of pesticide enhance the quality of life for residues and ground water con- farmers and society as a whole." tamination, there is evidence to Sustainable farming practices support or to refute the claim that vary from farm to farm but com- a major problem exists. But it is monly include: true that a great many people be- • Crop rotations that mitigate lieve these problems are serious. weeds, disease, insects, and The benefits of sustainable agri- other pest problems; provide culture do not rise or fall on evi- alternative sources of soil nitro- dence for or against these con- gen; reduce soil erosion; and cerns. Much of the public's grow- reduce risk of water contamina- ing interest in sustainability is a tion by agricultural chemicals. reaction to the sum total of unan- • Pest control strategies that are ticipated consequences of modern not harmful to natural systems, agriculture. farmers, their neighbors, or The public wants an agricul- consumers. This includes inte- ture that will not only be produc- grated pest management tech- tive and profitable, but that will niques that reduce the need for also conserve resources, protect pesticides by practices such as the environment, and enhance the scouting, use of resistant culti- health and safety of the public. vars, timing of planting, and That's what is meant by sustain- biological pest controls (see able agriculture. chapter 21). • Increased mechanical and bio- Definition logical weed control; more soil As defined by Congress in the and water conservation prac- 1990 farm bill, sustainable agri- tices; and strategic use of ani- culture is "an integrated system of mal and green manures 176 Part IV Technology (legumes used to add nutrients is the farmer's choice. However, and organic matter to the soil). it is not limited to that option. • Selection of synthetic chemi- Wise and conservative use of syn- cals whose use poses no signifi- thetic chemicals is also compat- cant hazard to humans, ible with the goals of sustainable animals, or the environment. agriculture. Sustainable agriculture focuses on an integrated approach to the Activities Underway in USDA science and art of farm manage- USDA agencies have been ad- ment. This approach encom- dressing some aspects of sustain- passes the whole farm, relying on able agriculture for some time. In the expertise of farmers, interdis- addition, several agencies are re- ciplinary teams of scientists, and directing their programs to more specialists from the public and effectively incorporate sustainable private sectors. Technologies for agriculture attributes into them. an individual crop or livestock Research and Education. enterprise can be essential compo- USDA research and education in nents of sustainable agriculture. sustainable agriculture are of two Standing alone, however, the general types—component and components do not provide suffi- whole farm. The component ac- cient answers. tivities are those concerned with If they are to be effective, re- the cause-and-effect relationships sults of research and education underlying specific farming prob- programs must be presented in a lems, and the development of par- practical, easily understood ticular technologies, equipment, framework that will enable the practices, and crop and livestock farmer to make informed choices varieties. The whole-farm activi- among various societal and indi- ties deal with the total picture, in- vidual goals—such as income, cluding the farmer's goals and yields, environment, food safety, resources, and the interactions of and risk aversion. all farming practices. Each makes This approach to farming uses an essential contribution. the wisdom of the past, combined USDA's Agricultural Research with today's improved knowledge Service is currently spending about biological, ecological, and about $11 million annually for economic processes. In essence it sustainable agriculture research in looks for complements between the whole-farm category. About production and environmental $83 million is devoted annually to goals. This type of farming can research on components of sus- include farming without manufac- tainable systems, such as biologi- tured chemicals (commonly cal pest controls and integrated known as organic farming), if that pest management, crop varieties Agriculture and the Environment 177 that will be more resistant to or tural Experiment Stations to pro- tolerant of pests, diseases, vide research on farming systems drought, acid soils, and air pollu- that help U.S. farmers meet their tion; prediction and control of soil site-specific needs. The most re- erosion; nutrient management and cent estimate indicates that $76 crop rotations to reduce water million is being spent on impor- pollution, enhance yields, and re- tant components of sustainable duce farmers' dependence on agri- agriculture. This includes such cultural chemicals; and improved topics as crop breeding, soil test- productive capacity of soils ing, and biological and cultural through incorporation of agricul- control methods for pests, includ- tural, municipal, and industrial ing biotechnology research and wastes. integrated pest management The Cooperative State Re- (IPM). search Service has a long history CSRS also administers the Sus- of partnership with State Agricul- Closeup of a Buffalo ridge tiller. Lowell Georgia/USDA 89BW1230-2 178 Pari IV Technology tamable Agriculture Research and vice. All of the State Cooperative Education program previously Extension Services conduct pro- known as Low Input Sustainable grams contributing to agricultural Agriculture (LISA). This program sustainability. These include was first funded at $3.9 million in educational programs on IPM, soil 1988 and has grown to $6.7 mil- testing and fertility management, lion in 1991. Matching funds pesticide management, soil con- from successful applicants have servation, water quality protec- more than doubled the amount of tion, and farm management. research and education activity. Extension personnel in several The focus of these projects is on States have also developed com- integrated crop and animal pro- prehensive programs linked to duction systems, or whole-farm research and on-farm demonstra- management systems. tions. In the 3 years since this pro- USDA's Extension Service has gram began, it has funded 100 had a lead role in developing a team projects, plus 9 planning nationwide "farmer-friendly" grants and 45 renew^als. To date, computer software package under 1,860 farmers have participated in the direction of Extension per- the funded projects. Hundreds of sonnel at the University of Mis- farmers have helped generate souri. Called the Farm Decision ideas for these projects and have Support
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