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Synthetic fertilizers do not deplete soil fertility. Some agricultural practices do, with a strong emphasis on mono-culture, but it is wrong to throw everything
by sergiosgc 4y ago
Synthetic fertilizers do not deplete soil fertility. Some agricultural practices do, with a strong emphasis on mono-culture, but it is wrong to throw everything in the same bag.
Growing without synthetic fertilizers appeals to the symbiotic Nature living, I get that. It's an ideal like any other, maybe worth of pursuit. But we first need to make peace with the fact that we'll either:
a) Be able to feed about a billion humans at most; or
b) Completely destroy many pristine ecosystems by multiplying arable land area by 5.
Removal of synthetic fertilizers would induce a yield drop of 80%: https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/cereal-crop-yield-vs-fertilizer-application?xScale=linear&yScale=linear https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/cereal-crop-yield-vs-fert...
- jvanderbot 4y agoSynthetic fertilizer does have negative impacts, but saying they have negative food impacts borders on oxymoron. Runoff to freshwater inducing toxicity is one major impact from over fertilization, which is not an implication of the product itself, but it's over use. I'm told. IANA farmer but I know many and worked with ag and water quality researchers for a few years in MN, USA.
- giantg2 4y agoNot just overuse, but use on land that is too close to bodies of water without riparian buffers.
- marcosdumay 4y agoAnd also wrong dispersal. All the fertilizer that gets on the water is wasted and does nothing but increase the farmer expenses.