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Book Details
Abstract
Agricultural production is in a period of rapid transformation which has seen an increase in the use of biotechnology, synthetic chemistry, biological chemicals and biopesticides. These disciplines are integrated with improvements in application technology, digital farming and the use of big data. Whilst offering unique opportunities to reduce potential environmental impacts, these advances also raise new environmental concerns. This book provides an overview of the changes occurring in the agricultural industry, highlighting opportunities to address impacts and indicating potential barriers to adoption of the technology. This new edition has been updated to include the very latest in agricultural developments, including organic farming and genetically modified crops. It is of interest to students and academics, as well as farmers and landowners and those working in legislation.
Roy Harrison OBE is Queen Elizabeth II Birmingham Centenary Professor of Environmental Health at the University of Birmingham. In 2004 he was appointed OBE for services to environmental science. Professor Harrison’s research interests lie in the field of environment and human health. His main specialism is in air pollution, from emissions through atmospheric chemical and physical transformations to exposure and effects on human health. Much of this work is designed to inform the development of policy.
Ron Hester is an emeritus professor of chemistry at the University of York. In addition to his research work on a wide range of applications of vibrational spectroscopy, he has been actively involved in environmental chemistry and was a founder member of the Royal Society of Chemistry’s Environment Group. His current activities are mainly as an editor and as an external examiner and assessor on courses, individual promotions, and departmental/subject area evaluations both in the UK and abroad.
Table of Contents
| Section Title | Page | Action | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cover | Cover | ||
| Contents | ix | ||
| Preface | v | ||
| Editors | xiii | ||
| List of Contributors | xv | ||
| Integrating Technologies to Minimize Environmental Impacts | 1 | ||
| 1 Introduction | 1 | ||
| 2 Developments and Emerging Trends in the Crop Protection Industry | 3 | ||
| 3 Improving the Sustainability of Crop Production | 6 | ||
| 3.1 Improved Properties of Synthetic Pesticides | 7 | ||
| 3.2 Emerging Technologies | 7 | ||
| 3.3 Enhanced Application Technologies | 10 | ||
| 3.4 Better Land Management | 12 | ||
| 4 Role of Regulation in Technology Development | 13 | ||
| Acknowledgments | 15 | ||
| References | 15 | ||
| The Environmental Impact of Fertiliser Nutrients on Freshwater | 20 | ||
| 1 Introduction | 20 | ||
| 2 The Requirements and Utilisation of N and P by Different Crops | 21 | ||
| 3 The Loss, Impact and Management of Fertiliser N and P from Land to Water | 26 | ||
| 3.1 The Availability of Nutrient Sources to Loss | 26 | ||
| 3.2 Pathways of Nutrient Loss | 29 | ||
| 3.3 Attenuation | 30 | ||
| 3.4 Processing of N and P in Freshwaters | 32 | ||
| 3.5 Strategies to Mitigate N and P Losses | 33 | ||
| 4 Future Directions and Research Gaps | 35 | ||
| Acknowledgments | 38 | ||
| References | 38 | ||
| Pesticides | 45 | ||
| 1 Introduction | 45 | ||
| 2 Pesticides and Terrestrial Wildlife | 46 | ||
| 2.1 Introduction | 46 | ||
| 2.2 Pesticide Use and Impacts on Terrestrial Biodiversity: Past and Present | 47 | ||
| 2.3 Wildlife Protection Goals in Pesticide Regulation | 48 | ||
| 2.4 Direct Effects | 51 | ||
| 2.5 Indirect Effects | 55 | ||
| 2.6 Pesticides and Protected Sites and Habitats | 57 | ||
| 2.7 Conclusion | 59 | ||
| 3 Pesticide Resistance | 61 | ||
| 3.1 Introduction | 61 | ||
| 3.2 Herbicide Resistance | 61 | ||
| 3.3 Fungicide Resistance | 63 | ||
| 3.4 Insecticide Resistance | 65 | ||
| 3.5 Managing Resistance | 66 | ||
| 4 Pesticides in Water | 67 | ||
| 4.1 What Is the Issue? | 67 | ||
| 4.2 Pesticide Movement to Water | 70 | ||
| 4.3 Regulatory Control | 76 | ||
| 4.4 Mitigation | 78 | ||
| 4.5 Looking Ahead: Do We Have All the Answers? | 83 | ||
| Acknowledgments | 84 | ||
| References | 84 | ||
| Agroecology and Organic Farming as Approaches to Reducing the \r\nEnvironmental Impacts of Agricultural Chemicals | 94 | ||
| 1 Introduction | 95 | ||
| 2 What are Agroecology and Organic Farming? | 95 | ||
| 2.1 Agroecology | 95 | ||
| 2.2 Organic Farming | 96 | ||
| 3 Typical Practices and Systems | 98 | ||
| 3.1 What Role Does Chemistry Play in these Approaches? | 98 | ||
| 3.2 Restricting Inputs or Redesigning Systems? | 100 | ||
| 4 Performance of Agroecological Approaches Relative to Conventional Intensive Systems | 101 | ||
| 4.1 Biodiversity | 101 | ||
| 4.2 Resource Use and Emissions | 102 | ||
| 4.3 Productivity | 105 | ||
| 4.4 Financial Viability | 107 | ||
| 5 Conclusions | 109 | ||
| Acknowledgments | 109 | ||
| References | 109 | ||
| Crop Biotechnology for Weed and Insect Control | 114 | ||
| 1 Global Trends of GM Crop Adoption | 114 | ||
| 2 Herbicide Tolerance | 118 | ||
| 2.1 A Driver for Changing Agronomic Practices | 118 | ||
| 2.2 Conservation Tillage Agriculture | 118 | ||
| 2.3 Managing Resistance | 119 | ||
| 3 Pest/Disease Resistance | 120 | ||
| 3.1 Bt Genes and Toxins | 120 | ||
| 3.2 Reduction in Insecticide Use | 121 | ||
| 3.3 Evolution of Insect Resistance to Cry Toxins | 122 | ||
| 4 What Does the Future Hold? | 124 | ||
| 4.1 Regulatory Hurdles and Asynchronous Approvals | 124 | ||
| 4.2 What is the Future for Crop Biotechnology? | 125 | ||
| References | 126 | ||
| Aquaculture | 128 | ||
| 1 Aquaculture - A Modern Food Industry with a Long History | 129 | ||
| 1.1 Our Seas and Oceans as a Source of Food | 129 | ||
| 1.2 A Changing Landscape | 131 | ||
| 1.3 A Long History | 132 | ||
| 1.4 The Present Day | 136 | ||
| 2 Challenges | 137 | ||
| 3 The Use of Chemicals for Pest/Disease/Parasite Control | 142 | ||
| 3.1 The Requirement to Use Pesticides | 142 | ||
| 3.2 Sea Lice Treatments in Salmon Aquaculture | 149 | ||
| 3.3 Non-salmonid Aquaculture | 152 | ||
| 3.4 Anti-fouling Compounds | 153 | ||
| 3.5 Disinfectants | 157 | ||
| 4 Potential Impacts on the Environment and Non-target Species | 157 | ||
| 5 Strategies to Reduce Chemical Usage | 163 | ||
| 5.1 Testing the Products | 163 | ||
| 5.2 Changes to Husbandry | 163 | ||
| 5.3 Minimising Infection Pressure by Cooperation Between Farms within a Geographically Connected Area | 165 | ||
| 5.4 Bioremediation | 166 | ||
| 5.5 Using Natural Compounds which are Environmentally Benign | 166 | ||
| 5.6 Improving the Host's Resistance to Disease | 166 | ||
| 5.7 Natural Predators | 167 | ||
| 6 Conclusions | 169 | ||
| Acknowledgments | 169 | ||
| References | 169 | ||
| Horticulture | 176 | ||
| 1 Introduction | 176 | ||
| 2 Overview | 178 | ||
| 2.1 Fertilisers | 178 | ||
| 2.2 Soil Health | 179 | ||
| 2.3 Pests, Diseases and Weeds | 180 | ||
| 2.4 Water Use and Water Quality | 185 | ||
| 3 Case Studies | 186 | ||
| 3.1 Case Study 1: Carrot Production in the UK | 186 | ||
| 3.2 Case Study 2: Integrated Pest and Disease Management (IPDM) in Apple Orchards | 192 | ||
| 4 Future Perspectives | 209 | ||
| 5 Conclusion | 210 | ||
| Acknowledgments | 210 | ||
| References | 210 | ||
| Subject Index | 215 |