Introduction
Agricultural activity is the earliest human’s activity on the natural ecosystem. It not only changes the local natural ecosystem but it also has a huge impact on the ecological environment. When many scholars trace back the historical roots of the problems of ecological environment, naturally they will be concern about the traditional mode of agricultural production, even back to the age when the foundation of traditional agricultural technology system was formed. Agricultural development for thousands of years both created a splendid civilization, but also accumulated a lot of environmental problems. The negative effects both affect the prevailing agricultural production and left some bad condition to future generations. In this paper, the whole process of the impact of human activities on natural ecology was discussed to provide more adequate historical basis for future environmental protection.
Impact on the ecological environment of ancient agriculture
In primitive societies, many forests were destroyed. People deforested to stave off the wild animals, develop farmlands and build houses. The disafforestation caused great damage to the forest and the animals inhabited there. Easter Island once had lots of forests. There are a lot of statues made by stone in Easter Island (Hughes, 102). Sculpture and transportation required a mass of mainpower and resources. Therefore, the subtropical forests in the island disappeared after deforestation. There were no raw materials for shipbuilding and transportation of the statues and no edible wild animals because of the extinction of tree species. In 1774, Europeans came to the island, kidnapped natives as slaves, brought infectious diseases such as smallpox and introduced shee...
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...ulgated in many countries, which play an important role on the protection of agricultural ecological environment. The "ecological agriculture" is a new type of agricultural production systems which is that the modernization of agriculture will go into a road with reasonable ecology and will achieve sustainable agricultural development. The "ecological agriculture" is the only way to promote the sustainable development of agriculture in modern world.
Works Cited
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Yeh, Emily T. “From WasteIand to Wetland? Nature and Nation in China’s Tibet,” Environmental History 14 (January 2009): 103-137. Web. Nov. 2013
Linton, Alan. 1982. Microbes, Man and Animals: The Natural History of Microbial Interactions. John Wiley & Sons. 342pp
Chapter 1 of the book gives an introduction to environment and history. The topic discusses the role that man has played in the changes that take place in environment and how man’s activities are becoming a threat to those of nature that are important for sustaining life. Citing the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment of 2005, Mosley says that the first global report on the planet’s health showed that the ecosystem services responsible for supporting life are being damaged by man’s ever increasing demands for natural resources (p.1). Also discussed is how nature activities played a role in the subsequent activities of man. The breaking up of Pangaea resulted in many different countries and continents which contributed to globalization as man started to explore the world. Globalization resulted in the exchange and introduction of new species of plants and animals to different lands as man travelled. When the environment became a political issue, it brought about the emergence of environmental history. This study analyses the role and place of nature in human life. It aims to reveal how environmental change and human action are intertwined (Mosley, p.2). The chapter also described the four levels through which historica...
The majority of this piece is dedicated to the author stating his opinion in regards to civilization expanding beyond its sustainable limits. The author makes it clear that he believes that humans have failed the natural environment and are in the process of eliminating all traces of wilderness from the planet. Nash points out facts that strengthen his argument, and quotes famous theologians on their similar views on environmental issues and policies. The combination of these facts and quotes validates the author’s opinion.
Anthropocentrism has been a central belief upon which modern human society has been constructed. The current state of the world, particularly the aspects that are negative, are reflective of humans continuously acting in ways that are in the interest of our own species. As environmental issues have worsened in recent decades, a great number of environmentalists are turning away from anthropocentric viewpoints, and instead adopting more ecocentric philosophies. Although anthropocentrism seems to be decreasing in popularity due to a widespread shift in understanding the natural world, philosopher William Murdy puts forth the argument that anthropocentrism still has relevancy in the context of modern environmental thought. In the following essay, I will explain Murdy’s interpretation of anthropocentrism and why he believes it to be an acceptable point of
Adams, W. M. (1999). Sustainability. In P. Cloke., P. Crang & M. Goodwin (Eds.), Introducing human geographies (pp. 125-130). London: Arnold.
...tive mode of agricultural production. Other global environmental impacts from industrial agriculture include soil erosion, salinization and water logging from irrigation, surface and groundwater contamination from pesticides and fertilizers, and the loss of cultural and biological diversity. The second phase is accelerating these unsustainable trends and is creating a global industrial food system that is highly fossil fuel intensive not only in the production sector, but in processing and distribution – where the average food item is more highly processed, more heavily packaged, and transported increasing distances. By contributing to increasing economic and social inequities at both national and international levels, this system also increases the risks of social instability. The need for more sustainable and socially just food and agricultural systems is clear.
Goudie, Andrew. (2000) The Human Impact on the Natural Environment. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press, 511 pp.
Throughout history, many individuals wish to discover and explain the relationship between nature and society, however, there are many complexities relating to this relationship. The struggle to understand how nature and society are viewed and connected derives from the idea that there are many definitions of what nature is. The Oxford dictionary of Human Geography (2003), explains how nature is difficult to define because it can be used in various contexts as well as throughout different time and spaces. As a result of this, the different understandings of what nature is contributes to how the nature society relationship is shaped by different processes. In order to better understand this relation there are many theorists and philosophers
A human induced global ecological crisis is occurring, threatening the stability of this earth and its inhabitants. The best path to address environmental issues both effectively and morally is a dilemma that raises concerns over which political values are needed to stop the deterioration of the natural environment. Climate change; depletion of resources; overpopulation; rising sea levels; pollution; extinction of species is just to mention a few of the damages that are occurring. The variety of environmental issues and who and how they affect people and other species is varied, however the nature of environmental issues has the potential to cause great devastation. The ecological crisis we face has been caused through anthropocentric behavior that is advantageous to humans, but whether or not anthropocentric attitudes can solve environmental issues effectively is up for debate. Ecologism in theory claims that in order for the ecological crisis to be dealt with absolutely, value and equality has to be placed in the natural world as well as for humans. This is contrasting to many of the dominant principles people in the contemporary world hold, which are more suited to the standards of environmentalism and less radical approaches to conserving the earth. I will argue in this essay that whilst ecologism could most effectively tackle environmental problems, the moral code of ecologism has practical and ethical defects that threaten the values and progress of anthropocentricism and liberal democracy.
So overall, Agriculture is playing a very important role in changing the lifestyle of different people. Agriculture might have made everything easy for us but it still has its cons. We see the effects of agriculture and how it affects the lives of other species and the environment.
Agriculture is quite possibly the most important advancement and discovery that humanity has made. It produces the one thing that we need the most: food. It has been around since 9500 BC, and can be the oldest sign of mankind’s acumen and the development and evolving of our minds and creations. Agriculture has been mastered throughout hundreds of years and is one of our most important resources on Earth, along with water and fossil fuels. Although the older farming methods from ancient times seem somewhat mediocre and barbaric, they were very ingenious and advanced for that time period. Over thousands of years, we have improved the way agriculture is used, how land is cultivated, the various techniques of farming and irrigation, and the tools and mechanics used. Numerous things that we see as aboriginal today, such as using a hand plow, were extremely contemporary in ancient times, and played key roles in the development of man and society, since quick labor was not abundant before this time. We are now extremely advanced in agriculture and irrigation and the tools used to farm and grow and harvest crops. We have learned from our past and ancestors how to grow and evolve in our methods and have advanced forward greatly.
A benefit for the farmer is agronomists help farmers enhance production. As before mentioned, agronomists save time for farmers and reduce the amount of labor required. With an agronomist checking fields for the farmer, the farmer has more time to focus on getting machinery ready for harvest. Also, with the agronomists checking fields, the crops will be ensured to receive the proper amount of nutrients. With the correct amount of nutrients, the farmer can increase his production. In addition to enhancing production, agronomy offers environmental benefits. Agronomists aid in reducing soil erosion. Their job is to help farmers in growing their crops. To grow the best crops, farmers must start with the best soil. Agronomists show farmers how to maintain quality soil. A soil high in quality will contain a topsoil with plenty of residues. These residues reduce the amount of runoff. Now that we know how agronomy benefits the farmers and the environment, let’s learn about the income and different job opportunities with
Agriculture is one of the most ancient forms of art and science that ties human development and well-being to natural resources and ecosystems. (Fritz J. Häni, 2007) Sustainable Agriculture is the production of food, fibre, plant and animal products using farming techniques that protect the environment, public health, human communities and animal welfare. (Sustainable Agriculture - The Basics, 2015) Sustainable agriculture is an integrated system of plant and animal production practices having a site – specific application that over the long term will:
Agriculture has been a fundamental component of human societies for centuries. It is so fundamental in fact that it is often forgotten by those dependent on its products, but not directly involved in the production. As we enter the 21st century, agriculture is beginning to receive more attention from the general public as the implications of farming are realized and the problem of potential world wide food shortage is addressed. With the future in focus, much of agricultural establishment uses words like biotech, and high-tech to describe their goals for U.S. agriculture. With few exceptions, traditional agriculturalists see a continuing trend of industrial agricultural practices that continue to drive production to fewer, larger, and more specialized production units which are virtually responsible for all stages of the production globally. This increased specialization is dependent on new biological technologies and information technologies at all levels from farms on which the food is produced to the markets where it is distributed.
As a distinctive critical approach to literature, ecocriticism was not inaugurated until late in the 1980s in the USA. ‘Green Studies’ is an alternative term for ecocriticism in the UK where this new approach to literature began in the early 1990s. It is appropriate here to stress that though ecocriticism as a separate discipline emerged in the 1990s, it is a fact that the relation between man and his physical environment had always been intriguing to literary critics. This interest can be explained in two ways.1.Man could realize in the last decade of the 20th century that the greatest problem of the 21st century would be the survival of the earth with all her living and non-living beings. 2. It is within some physical environment that man always exists and there can not be ‘is’ without ‘where’ as Lawrence Buell has put it. In fact man feels threatened in the ecologically degraded world. The last decade of 20th century clearly showed that man should do something to help the earth survive. Ecocriticism ...