13 Oct 2005
Beneficial effects of no-till farming depend upon future climate change

Well, here's a crock and no mistake... it assumes that no till is an environmentally friendly practice. But it's not.

"No till" means minimal soil disturbance, that is, reducing or eliminating plowing, disking and other tilling operations. This really does reduce soil erosion, and can also (as this piece points out) help the soil in retention of carbon compounds. But think about it: why do we plow fields in the first place? Why not just drop the seeds in a hole and let'em go to it?

You can try this in your garden next year. Don't turn anything with the roto-tiller - just drill and drop seeds. Then sit back and watch as your little bit of Eden is overrun by weeds. And bugs. You see, along with the dirt itself, tilling disturbs the pests in the soil. The truth is simple: tillage (be it by plow or hoe) is done to control weeds and pests - and no till farming depends on massive application of herbicides and pesticides to achieve the same production.

Worse, when applying herbicides to a tilled field there's the option of using soil-incorporated chemicals, but no-till systems place total reliance on herbicides applied to the soil surface or foliage. Multiple passes to apply herbicides timed to match weed growth is virtually required for no till. Which uses up all the fuel for the tractor saved by not plowing and disking!

No till farming is not the environmental panacea it's often made out to be - in fact, by pumping massive quantities of poison into the earth, it may be worse for the environment than the plow could ever hope to be. The most beneficial effect of no till farming is to the stockholders of Monsanto and other manufacturers of agricultural chemicals.

By storing carbon in their fields through no-till farming practice, farmers can help countries meet targeted reductions in atmospheric carbon dioxide and reduce the harmful effects of global warming. However, researchers say, the amount of carbon stored in soils depends on how the climate changes and how much carbon dioxide is in the atmosphere.

(link) [EurekAlert!]

00:00 /Agriculture | 2 comments | permanent link