首页
登录
职称英语
Organic agriculture is a relatively untapped resource for feeding the Earth’s
Organic agriculture is a relatively untapped resource for feeding the Earth’s
游客
2023-08-08
72
管理
问题
Organic agriculture is a relatively untapped resource for feeding the Earth’s population, especially in the face of climate change and other global challenges. That’s the conclusion I reached in reviewing 40 years of science comparing the long-term prospects of organic and conventional farming.
The review study, "Organic Agriculture in the 21st Century," is featured as the cover story for the February issue of the journal Nature Plants. It is the first to compare organic and conventional agriculture across the main goals of sustainability identified by the National Academy of Sciences: productivity, economics, and environment.
Critics have long argued that organic agriculture is inefficient, requiring more land to yield the same amount of food. It’s true that organic farming produces lower yields, averaging 10 to 20 percent less than conventional. Advocates contend that the environmental advantages of organic agriculture far outweigh the lower yields, and that increasing research and breeding resources for organic systems would reduce the yield gap. Sometimes excluded from these arguments is the fact that we already produce enough food to more than feed the world’s 7.4 billion people but do not provide adequate access to all individuals.
In some cases, organic yields can be higher than conventional. For example, in severe drought conditions, which are expected to increase with climate change in many areas, organic farms can produce as good, if not better, yields because of the higher water-holding capacity of organically farmed soils.
What science does tell us is that mainstream conventional farming systems have provided growing supplies of food and other products but often at the expense of other sustainability goals.
Conventional agriculture may produce more food, but it often comes at a cost to the environment. Biodiversity loss, environmental degradation, and severe impacts on ecosystem services have not only accompanied conventional farming systems but have often extended well beyond their field boundaries. With organic agriculture, environmental costs tend to be lower and the benefits greater.
Overall, organic farms tend to store more soil carbon, have better soil quality, and reduce soil erosion compared to their conventional counterparts. Organic agriculture also creates less soil and water pollution and lower greenhouse gas emissions. And it’s more energy-efficient because it doesn’t rely on synthetic fertilizers or pesticides.
Organic agriculture is also associated with greater biodiversity of plants, animals, insects and microorganisms as well as genetic diversity. Biodiversity increases the services that nature provides and improves the ability of farming systems to adapt to changing conditions.
Despite lower yields, organic agriculture is more profitable for farmers because consumers are willing to pay more. Higher prices, called price premiums, can be justified as a way to compensate farmers for providing ecosystem services and avoiding environmental damage or external costs. [br] What does the author think should be taken into account in arguing about organic farming?
选项
A、Growth in world population.
B、Deterioration in soil fertility.
C、Inequality in food distribution.
D、Advance in farming technology.
答案
C
解析
推理判断题。第三段前两句提到,批评人士认为有机农业低产。第三句指出,支持者认为有机农业的环境优势远超低产。定位句提到,有时被排除在这些争论之外的事实是;我们已经生产了足够的粮食来养活全世界74亿人口,但却未向所有个人提供获得粮食的适当途径。由此可见,作者认为这个被排除在讨论之外的事实应被纳入考虑,而未向所有个人提供获得粮食的适当途径表明粮食分配并不平等,故答案为C)。
转载请注明原文地址:https://tihaiku.com/zcyy/2909059.html
相关试题推荐
中国目前仍面临着人口多、资源少的严峻现实。鉴于中国目前的资源储备(resourcereserve),很多人认为我们仍要继续实行计划生育政策(theon
Thedestructionofournaturalresourcesandcontaminationofourfoodsuppl
Thedestructionofournaturalresourcesandcontaminationofourfoodsuppl
FeedingtheMassesaLoadofManureTheGreenRevolutionMyth,NormanBo
FeedingtheMassesaLoadofManureTheGreenRevolutionMyth,NormanBo
FeedingtheMassesaLoadofManureTheGreenRevolutionMyth,NormanBo
资源消耗resourcesconsumption
节约资源resourcesconservation
资源短缺shortageofresources
资源枯竭depletionofresources
随机试题
HintsandTipstoSaveMoneyA)Spendless.Thisisnotoversimplifyingt
Whatistheproblemthatisnewlycomingupforthedrivers?[br][originaltext
某省会城市的一个城市结合部社区,常住人口约3万,近二十年来快速城市化,农业人口比
邓析的本领是对于法律条文咬文嚼字,在不同案件中,________作出不同的解释。
政府制定或调整重大劳动关系标准应当贯彻“三方原则”,其中三方指的是()。A.企
中医学的整体观念,主要体现于A.人体自身的整体性 B.天与地的统一性 C.阴
2×21年1月1日,A公司购入一项管理用无形资产,双方协议采用分期付款方式支付价
发电机与10kV母线相接,变压器一次侧接发电机,二次侧接110kV线路,发电机与
阀门有多种分类方式,属于按照结构划分的是(),A.手动阀门 B.气动阀门
根据《生产安全事故报告和调查处理条例》对生产安全事故调查的规定,未造成人员伤亡的
最新回复
(
0
)