Conventional Agriculture and its Effect on Water Quality in the United States
Introduction
The United States contains a vast amount of natural resources within a land area that
covers nearly 2.3 billion acres. Fifty-one percent of the United States land base has been
converted into grassland, pasture, range, cropland, and other miscellaneous farmland uses.
Agriculture uses 80% of the ground and surface water within the United States, which has an
enormous effect on the water quality. 1 Agriculture effects the social, economic, and
environmental well-being of our country and is the backbone of our nation. So it is important to
ask what three conventional agricultural practices degrade water quality the most, and at what
rate have these …show more content…
8
Monoculture is another main characteristic of conventional agriculture that influences
water quality. It is characterized by cultivating a single crop species, primarily wheat, corn,
soybeans, cotton, sorghum, and sugarcane, on large fields year after year. The purpose for
adopting monoculture practices was due to the development of large-scale mechanization for
3
tilling, planting, and harvesting of improved high yielding crop varieties that could be easily
managed by the availability of low-cost chemical fertilizers and pesticides. 9 Monoculture allows
technological-based inputs to be maximized, which reduces the cost of labor and increases the
production efficiency of the operation. 10 Consequently, the simplified crop production system
requires a high amount of agroindustrial inputs to function. According to the United States
Department of Agriculture (USDA) census of agriculture, only 3% of the United States
population provides all food, fuel, and fiber needs for the country, with the average age of
producers being 57. 11 So, it is encouraged by government policies that they utilize large
machinery, specialized and genetically engineered crop varieties, inorganic fertilizers,
Introduction
The United States contains a vast amount of natural resources within a land area that
covers nearly 2.3 billion acres. Fifty-one percent of the United States land base has been
converted into grassland, pasture, range, cropland, and other miscellaneous farmland uses.
Agriculture uses 80% of the ground and surface water within the United States, which has an
enormous effect on the water quality. 1 Agriculture effects the social, economic, and
environmental well-being of our country and is the backbone of our nation. So it is important to
ask what three conventional agricultural practices degrade water quality the most, and at what
rate have these …show more content…
8
Monoculture is another main characteristic of conventional agriculture that influences
water quality. It is characterized by cultivating a single crop species, primarily wheat, corn,
soybeans, cotton, sorghum, and sugarcane, on large fields year after year. The purpose for
adopting monoculture practices was due to the development of large-scale mechanization for
3
tilling, planting, and harvesting of improved high yielding crop varieties that could be easily
managed by the availability of low-cost chemical fertilizers and pesticides. 9 Monoculture allows
technological-based inputs to be maximized, which reduces the cost of labor and increases the
production efficiency of the operation. 10 Consequently, the simplified crop production system
requires a high amount of agroindustrial inputs to function. According to the United States
Department of Agriculture (USDA) census of agriculture, only 3% of the United States
population provides all food, fuel, and fiber needs for the country, with the average age of
producers being 57. 11 So, it is encouraged by government policies that they utilize large
machinery, specialized and genetically engineered crop varieties, inorganic fertilizers,