Agriculture: Industrial, or Sustainable?

According to the United Nations, by 2050, the world population could reach 8.9 billion, or even be as high as 10.6 billion. A growing population demands more food, but it is getting ever more difficult to meet the demand.

Today, industrial agriculture is the primary method used to respond to these needs. Industrial agriculture, or industrial farming, refers to farming done for maximum income and production.

Unsurprisingly, industrial agriculture is widely used in industrialized countries. It appears to be a means for a crop to yield larger amounts of a product for a lower price. Though profit can be made through industrial agriculture, the practice is controversial, and for good reason.

One of the key issues is monoculture. Many problems arise when a single crop is planted over a wide area. Pests have a wider area to spread, and when only one crop is present, only certain pests will be present. The biodiversity of the land in which the monoculture is planted is hence severely impacted. Also, more pesticides are needed; when there is a large population of pests, they rapidly develop resistance to pesticides.

Low genetic diversity of crops is another issue. For example, for seedless grape vines to reproduce, a cutting of the original plant must be taken to grow into a new plant. Hence, seedless grape crops are genetically identical. If seedless grapes were to become vulnerable to a disease or pest, the entire population could be wiped out. A lack of genetic diversity makes plants more vulnerable.

Industrial agriculture is also harmful in other ways; it damages the surrounding environment. Runoff from fields treated with pesticides and fertilizer makes its way into lakes and rivers. Pollution from industrial machines gets into the air. Large areas planted with only one species attract only certain pests and predators, reducing the biodiversity of the surroundings.

There is a type of agriculture that can prevent this damage, however. Sustainable agriculture rejects conventional industrial methods in favour of practices with less of an environmental impact.

Instead of using pesticides, crops can be rotated to prevent populations of pests from becoming established. Different varieties of crops can be grown beside each other to reduce the concentration of pests and preserve biodiversity. Growing healthier plants can also reduce the impact of pests. Instead of using fertilizer, soil can be enriched naturally, by adding composted material, for example.

Another way to eliminate pests is by managing farms in order for them to harbour populations of natural predators. Birds, bats, spiders, and ladybugs are all organisms that hunt pests, and providing an environment beneficial to them is not only good for pest control, but also for the biodiversity of the surrounding ecosystem.

Sustainable agriculture methods are actually effective enough to meet the demand for food, with a minimal environmental impact. If we continue to pollute through industrial agriculture, both the environment and the human population will suffer. Sustainable agriculture is a means to prevent further damage, and it works.

Blogs I commented on:

Connie's blog

Dora's blog

References:

Feenstra, Gail, Chuck Ingels, and David Campbell. "What Is Sustainable Agriculture?" UC Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program. The University of California. Web. 12 Jan. 2011. http://www.sarep.ucdavis.edu/concept.htm

"How Can There Be Seedless Grapes?" HowStuffWorks. Web. 12 Jan. 2011. http://science.howstuffworks.com/environmental/life/botany/question349.htm

"Industrial Agriculture." Economy Watch. Web. 12 Jan. 2011. http://www.economywatch.com/agriculture/types/industrial.html

"Sustainable Agriculture." National Geographic. National Geographic Society. Web. 12 Jan. 2011. http://environment.nationalgeographic.com/environment/habitats/sustainable-agriculture/

"Sustainable Agriculture Techniques." Food & Agriculture. The Union of Concerned Scientists, 24 Aug. 2008. Web. 12 Jan. 2011. http://www.ucsusa.org/food_and_agriculture/science_and_impacts/science/sustainable-agriculture.html

"World Population to 2300." United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, 2004. Web. http://www.un.org/esa/population/publications/longrange2/WorldPop2300final.pdf

Designer Babies

"Designer Babies", (or "designer children") are children whose genetic traits are chosen by their parents; whether through screening or active genetic modification.

There are different approaches to the subject. Designer babies may be created to ensure that a child inherits certain traits. Parents may choose to have a child with a certain eye colour, or, a certain stature. Screening can also be done for other traits, such as intelligence.

Some dismiss the practice of choosing a child's physical appearance and intelligence as shallow. Still, they may argue that if one of the parents carries a gene for a certain disorder, the parents should be able to opt to have a healthy baby, without any disorders.

Some wish to create designer babies for medical purposes. If a child is in need of bone marrow, and a donor cannot be found, the parents may opt to design a baby that is genetically compatible with the sick child.

Scanning for genetic disorders seems like a good idea. Designing babies who don't immediately pass away after birth due to morbid genetic conditions would save parents much grief. Parents may become pickier as societal standards change, however. They could start screening for genes linked to less debilitating disorders, such as ADHD. This practice could also be considered discriminatory against people who lead a successful life despite their disability, such as those who are deaf.

Ensuring the birth of healthy children is not so bad compared to what else can be achieved, however. If parents were given the choice of eye colour, athletic ability, and intelligence, would this serve to discriminate against those who are not athletic, intelligent, and beautiful? Nobody is perfect; people are born with a wide variety of genetic traits. With parents being able to choose the characteristics of their children, there may be increasing pressure to have unnaturally 'perfect' children.

I think that we can't really know if creating designer babies is entirely a bad thing yet. So long as the children are being treated well (especially those created to help another child), should we be concerned? More advanced trait selection technology (i.e. for cosmetic purposes) will likely not become available for a while, by which time people may already be modifying their appearance in other ways (e.g.: cosmetic surgery). Also, at the moment, scientists are unable to implant new genes; they can only screen embryos for certain traits. The child's traits still need to be inherited from the parents.

If this technology can save lives by preventing people from having harmful disorders, it is not a completely bad thing. Vaccines were a controversial technology at the time of their introduction, but they have now rendered many diseases obsolete.

Ultimately, so long as no harm is being done, and we're careful about it, creating designer babies shouldn't be too much of a problem. Eventually, measures may need to be taken to regulate designer babies, but for now, I think that the only way to find out is to wait and see.

Blogs I commented on:

http://itsalive-conn.blogspot.com/2010/11/designer-babies.html?showComment=1289833027140#c3298430410593535763

http://adorablogs.blogspot.com/2010/10/ideal-babyit-could-be-yours.html?showComment=1289833950094#c8800805274980121336

Works Cited:

Bonsor, Kevin, and Julia Layton. "How Designer Children Work." HowStuffWorks.com. 10 May 2001. Web. 13 Nov. 2010. <http://science.howstuffworks.com/environmental/life/genetic/designer-children.htm>.

Keim, Brandon. "Designer Babies: A Right to Choose?" Wired News. 9 Mar. 2009. Web. 13 Nov. 2010. <http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2009/03/designerdebate/>.

Lemonick, Michael D., David Bjerklie, Alice Park, and Dick Thompson. "Designer Babies." Time.com. 11 Jan. 1999. Web. 13 Nov. 2010. <http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,989987,00.html>.

Pollack, Gladys. "Designer Babies." Reader's Digest Magazine Canada Online. Web. 13 Nov. 2010. <http://www.readersdigest.ca/mag/2001/09/designer_babies.html>.

"The Need to Regulate "Designer Babies"" Scientific American. 4 May 2009. Web. 13 Nov. 2010. <http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=regulate-designer-babies>.

"Will screening for birth defects lead to 'designer babies'?" Canada.com. 5 Oct. 2005. Web. 13 Nov. 2010. <http://www.canada.com/topics/lifestyle/parenting/story.html?id=af85fffa-81df-4c47-b389-d7eefc2faccf&k=7781>.

Primate Protection in Bioko

According to the United Nations, 2010 is the International Year of Biodiversity.

Biodiversity—a word often thrown around by environmentalists—is the variety of life on Earth. Preserving it is important, but human influence is often associated with having a negative impact on biodiversity.

Still, there are several organizations making an effort to change that. The Bioko Biodiversity Protection Program aims to restore the rich biodiversity of Bioko, an island in Equatorial Guinea, off the west coast of Africa. The program's main focus is on the island's critically endangered primates and nesting sea turtles.

Seven species of primate are being protected: the Bioko drill, the black colobus, the Pennant's red colobus, the red-eared Guenon, the crowned guenon, the Preuss's monkey, and the greater spot-nosed monkey.

The survival of these species was in jeopardy primarily due to hunting. Wild game, known locally as bushmeat, is a delicacy, and can fetch high prices on the market.

The state of the primates is very delicate. Some of the critically endangered species, such as the black colobus and the Pennant's red colobus, do not exist in captivity.

To ensure the protection of the species, the Bioko Biodiversity Protection Program, or BBPP, contracts teams of locals to serve on forest or beach patrol to deter hunting. The program also conducts annual expeditions to the Gran Caladera de Luba, where a census of primates and sea turtles is conducted. BBPP conducts an ongoing analysis of the bushmeat market to gauge attitudes towards bushmeat, and it sponsors awareness campaigns to stem its demand. Finally, the program has also held environmental awareness meetings, which took place in the villages of Baney, Batoicopa, Riaba, and Luba.

Fortunately, the program has been successful. Thanks to the BBPP, the government of Equatorial Guinea decided to ban the hunting and consumption of primates entirely, an important step forward in preserving the biodiversity of Bioko.

Image: The red-eared Guenon, or red-eared monkey, an endangered species found in Bioko. (Source: National Geographic

Sources:

"2010 International Year of Biodiversity." Convention on Biological Diversity. Web. 30 Sept. 2010. <http://www.cbd.int/2010/welcome/>.

Bioko Biodiversity Protection Program. Web. 30 Sept. 2010. <http://www.bioko.org/index.php>.

"Definition of Biodiversity." Saskatchewan Eco Network. Web. 30 Sept. 2010. <http://www.econet.sk.ca/issues/biodiversity/definition.html>.

Morell, Virginia. "Bioko Primates." National Geographic Magazine. Aug. 2008. Web. 30 Sept. 2010. <http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2008/08/bioko-primates/morell-text>.

Blogs I commented on:

http://biomeggs.blogspot.com/2010/09/human-intervention-is-bad-and-good.html?showComment=1285881251213#c1112704056860233809

http://jamie-bioblog.blogspot.com/2010/09/arctic-is-on-thin-ice.html#comment-3591924584466364573