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Farming contributes (a lot) to climate change. Can that be fixed? Scientists say it can.
With the recent rise of locavore cuisine and its promise of sustainably sourced produce, dairy and meat, you might be tempted to think that farms are increasingly Earth-friendly places.
Well, get that pastoral picture—calm cows drinking deep from a spring, golden wheat glowing with a valley sunrise, towheaded children picking pesticide-free strawberries—out of your head. Most farming isn’t all that green, nor is the agriculture industry as a whole. Rather, agriculture is responsible for approximately a third of the human-caused greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to climate change, according to a report in Nature.
Scientists at Climate Focus and California Environmental Associates say this doesn’t have to be the case. Researchers at these institutions maintain that yearly carbon emissions from global agriculture can be slashed from 50 to 90 percent by 2030, “the equivalent of removing all the cars from the world,” without jeopardizing the world’s food supply.
The researchers say that farmers can limit emissions, for example, by making sure that they don’t over-fertilize fields, something that can lower yields, lessen long-term soil fertility and add to greenhouse gases.
Well, get that pastoral picture—calm cows drinking deep from a spring, golden wheat glowing with a valley sunrise, towheaded children picking pesticide-free strawberries—out of your head. Most farming isn’t all that green, nor is the agriculture industry as a whole. Rather, agriculture is responsible for approximately a third of the human-caused greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to climate change, according to a report in Nature.
Scientists at Climate Focus and California Environmental Associates say this doesn’t have to be the case. Researchers at these institutions maintain that yearly carbon emissions from global agriculture can be slashed from 50 to 90 percent by 2030, “the equivalent of removing all the cars from the world,” without jeopardizing the world’s food supply.
The researchers say that farmers can limit emissions, for example, by making sure that they don’t over-fertilize fields, something that can lower yields, lessen long-term soil fertility and add to greenhouse gases.
MORE HERE: http://wonkynewsnerd.com/fixing-farming-without-breaking-food/
