AGBE 2010 Worksheet on Agricultural Production and the Local Environment

Name Jordan Morack Date 12/11 Section: AGBE 2010-500

Question numbers match station numbers.
1. Complete the top of this sheet.
2. Fill in the blanks: Agricultural uses soil and water to produce food
3. The environmental issue that has the greatest potential for influencing future food
production.
4. Land can become unsuitable for agricultural production in what three ways:
1. Erosion
2. Chemical instability
3. Physical instability

5. Why is soil fertility important? Soil fertility is a key factor in determining agricultural potential. All
plants take up nutrients from the soil as they grow; these nutrients are removed with any plant that is
harvested. Crop rotation or fertilizers are required to prevent even the best soils being depleted by
farming.
6. Explain how soil is formed. Basically, soil forms as rocks slowly crumble away. Air and water collect
between the particles, and chemical changes occur. Plants take root, binding the particles together,
shielding the surface from the elements, drawing up minerals from lower layers and attracting animal
life. Bacteria and fungi break down plant and animal remains into fertile humus
7. Only 11% percent of the world’s soils can be farmed.
8. Define erosion. The breaking if rocks and minerals into soil.

9. List four ways wind and water can harm agricultural production:
1) The eroded soil may contain nutrients needed for plant development 2) The remaining soil may be so
dense that it is difficult for plant roots to develop 3) Erosion may reduce the capacity of the soil to
retain water needed for plant growth 4)Erosion may result in uneven terrain that makes cultivation
difficult
10.How can agricultural production cause soil erosion? Land used for ag. production may be bare of
vegetation for months at a time. The absence of roots to hold the soil in place makes the soil more easily
erodible. Plowing the soil for preparation for seeding exposes it to wind and rain and increases the rate of erosion
Irrigation can contribute directly to water erosion

11. Define chemically unsuited soils. Soils that suffer from excessive chemical toxicity
12. List three things that affect water quality. Declines in fish population, use of surface water for
irrigation, Irrigation or rainwater runoff can also carry residues from fertilizers and chemical pesticides
13. What is phytofarming? Growing vegetables indoors
14. What is the tradeoff between production and the environment? aspect of agricultural research
is to develop technology that relaxes the constraints that environment imposes on agricultural output.
Ex. Plants that can survive in brackish water, seed varieties that are more droughtresistant, & chemicals that
increase the ability of soils to retain moisture

15. What causes the average temperature of the planet to eventually increase? Global
warming
16. Why does the water in the oceans increase because the temperature increases? Ice
melts. Volume of water expands as it heats.
17. How does global warming affect crop yield
18. Explain changes in crop yields over the past 500 years.An acre today produces 15x as much wheat
as it produced 500 years ago

19. What makes yields increase? As technology increases so will crop yields. GMO’s, better seeds, and
better harvesting tactics allows for higher yield.

20. What is the general rule regarding yields and inputs? when we increase the intensity of input use
on a plot of land, we increase the output.

21. How does fertilizer affect production? Improves yields.

22. Define physically unsuited soils. Extreme degradation: erosion, packing, over-use, too rocky, too high
elevation, etc

23. Animal traction may increase crop yields for two reasons: List them. Plowing with animals
breaks up the soil more deeply & more completely and thereby aids in plant growth and Animal manure is a
source of fertilizer for the soi.

24. When is mechanization most profitable? Mechanization is most profitable where land is abundant,
labor is scarce, and credit & fuel are cheap.

25. Explain positive marginal productivity. Adding labor to each hectare of land will increase yield as long
as there is productive work for the additional workers.

26. Describe small-scale & subsistence farmers. farmers working tiny plots of land to feed themselves.
27. What is one criticism of the Green Revolution? The Revolution brought increased use of fertilizer,
irrigation, & pesticides = potentially damaging to the environment
28. Pick two more to add to question 26. (criticisms of the Green Revolution) Revolution may
increase inequality of income and Revolution crowded out traditional varieties and led to loss of species diversity.

29. What is total factor productivity? calculated by first constructing two indexes: an index of output that
reflects changes in levels of all outputs, and an index of input use that reflects changes in all levels of all inputs.

30. What are three concerns about future yield growth? Growth in yields has been slowing, Yield at

the farm level is reaching plateau, and High yields are not environmentally sustainable.

31. In developing countries, 30% of food is lost between the field and the consumer by:
1.Pests 2.Poor storage facilities 3.Poor transportation 4.Poor on-farm handling