MAJOR ENVIRONMENTAL PROBLEMS:

SOME POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS

DEPLETION OF
NATURAL
and
RESOURCES
AGRICULTURAL
PRODUCTION
 Natural Resource Depletion
Natural resource depletion occurs when resources are
taken from the environment quicker than they are
replenished. This problem is further amplified by
global population increases and consequent
increasing resource needs.
Renewable resources like air, water,
and soil help us grow crops and keep
us hydrated.

Nonrenewable resources like fossil

fuels and other extractable minerals
are used to make products and
commodities which contribute to our
day-to-day life.
Causes of Natural Resource
Depletion

1) Population
Consumption habits and population
sizes differ by country, region, and city.
The way people live, transport
themselves, and shop affects which
natural resources are used.
 Causes of Natural Resource Depletion
2) Industrialization
Industrialization requires large amounts of natural resource extraction and processing. For
economic growth, many countries depend on industrialization, making it a key part of
development.
 Causes of Natural
Resource Depletion

3) Climate Change

Climate change is causing

natural resource depletion
through increased extreme
weather events. These weather
events include droughts,
floods, and forest fires that
deplete natural resources.
Causes of Natural Resource
Depletion

4) Pollution

Pollution contaminates air, water, and

soil resources, making them unfit for
human or animal use. This reduces the
amount of resources that can be used,
putting greater pressure on other
resources.
Natural Resource
Depletion Effects

As the supply of natural resources

decreases while demand increases,
several effects are felt at
economic, social, and
environmental levels.

1) Increased Costs
As the prices of resources
increase, the cost of creating
products or providing services
could also increase.
 Natural Resource
Depletion Effects
2) Ecosystem Dysfunction
Depleting resources damages the
environment, disrupting ecosystem
balance and functions.

*A positive feedback loop occurs in nature when the product of a reaction leads to an increase in that reaction.
Examples of Natural Resource
Depletion

The Amazon
The Amazon Rainforest has seen rapid
deforestation in the last century. The
Amazon contains the majority of tropical
rainforest in the world. The forest
contains high biodiversity and contributes
to global water and carbon cycles.

*Carbon sinks are environments that naturally absorb a lot of carbon from the atmosphere. The main carbon sinks in
the world are oceans, soils, and forests.
 Examples of Natural
Resource Depletion
Everglades
The Everglades is a tropical wetland in
Florida, with one of the most unique
ecosystems in the world. After driving
out Indigenous groups from the area in
the 19th century, Florida settlers sought
to drain the Everglades for agriculture
and urban development. Within a
century, half the original Everglades
had been drained and converted to
other uses. The effects of the drainage
have heavily affected local ecosystems.
Natural Resource Depletion Solutions

1) Sustainable Development Policies

 Sustainable development policies are a
collection of guidelines and principles that can
guide sustainable development in resource use.
This can include conservation efforts,
technological advancements, and curbing
consumption habits.

 Sustainable development aims to fulfill the

needs of current populations without
compromising the needs of future populations.
Natural Resource Depletion
Solutions

2) Resource Efficiency

Resource efficiency can take many different

forms. Some have proposed a circular
economy where resources are shared, re-used,
and recycled until they are unusable. This is in
contrast to a linear economy, which takes
resources that make products that end up as
waste.
 Natural Resource Depletion - Key takeaways

• Natural resource depletion occurs when resources are taken from the
environment faster than they are replenished.

• Causes of natural resource depletion include population growth, consumer

habits, industrialization, climate change, and pollution.

• The effects of natural resource depletion include increased costs, ecosystem

dysfunction, and further climate change.

• Some solutions to natural resource depletion include sustainable development

policies and energy efficiency with a focus on a circular economy.
 Agricultural Production
 Agricultural production includes cultivating
soil, planting, raising and harvesting crops,
rearing, feeding, and managing animals that
result in a product that will ultimately be
sold at retail.

 Agricultural production has always

involved the exploitation of resources such
as soil, water, and energy.

• A key challenge for the agriculture sector is to feed an increasing global population, while at the same
time reducing the environmental impact and preserving natural resources for future generations.
 Agricultural Productivity
 Agricultural productivity is the ratio of
agricultural inputs to outputs.

 The greater the agricultural output (for a

given input), the higher the agricultural
productivity of a farm. In simple terms, we
can think of agricultural productivity using
this equation:

output ÷ input = productivity.

Productivity and Efficiency
 To increase productivity, an individual
tries to complete more work using
the same amount of resources.
 Farmers aim to enhance their energy
productivity by increasing output.

 To increase efficiency, an individual tries

to complete the same amount of
work using fewer resources.
 Farmers aim to enhance their energy
efficiency by decreasing input.
 Importance of Agricultural
Productivity
1) Food Security

Food security is defined as reliable

access to a sufficient quantity of
affordable and nutritious food.
Importance of Agricultural Productivity

2) Income
A farm's profit is equivalent to its revenue, minus its
costs. Increasing agricultural productivity enhances
revenue without increasing costs. Thus, farms will
make more profit.
Importance of Agricultural Productivity

3) Environmental Benefits

Modern agriculture is detrimental to the

environment. It's associated with pollution,
deforestation, and greenhouse gas emissions.
Increasing productivity reduces the land and
energy requirements of agriculture. In turn, this
results in less environmental degradation, less
deforestation, and fewer greenhouse gas emissions.
 Intensive and Extensive
Systems
 Intensive farming refers to an
agricultural system where there
are high levels of labour and
capital in comparison to the land
area.

*Excess agrochemicals can run off into water bodies. The high nutrient input triggers rapid algal growth, leading to
toxic algal blooms that deplete the water of oxygen, killing marine organisms. This process is known as eutrophication.
Intensive and Extensive Systems

 Extensive farming refers to an agricultural

system where large farms are cultivated
with lower inputs of labour and capital.
Improving Agricultural Productivity

1) Genetic Manipulation
Farmers can modify the genes of crops or
livestock using technology. Methods include:

 Selective Breeding: breeding individuals

with desirable characteristics for many
generations.
• Choosing parents with particular
characteristics to breed together and
produce offspring with more desirable
characteristics.
Improving Agricultural Productivity

1) Genetic Manipulation
 Vegetative Propagation: 'cloning' a plant
with desirable characteristics.
• A process in which plants reproduce
from stems, roots and leaves.
Improving Agricultural Productivity

1) Genetic Manipulation

 Genetic Engineering: introducing a

gene from another organism that
codes for a desired trait or
characteristic

• a process that uses laboratory-

based technologies to alter the
DNA makeup of an organism.
Improving Agricultural Productivity

2) Effective Land Use

Farmers can maximise their land use by
increasing their stocking density or crop
density.
 Stocking density is the number of
livestock per unit of grazing area.
Recommended stocking density
usually depends on the size of the animal.
Improving Agricultural Productivity

2) Effective Land Use

 Crop density is the number of individual
plants per unit of ground area. Increasing
crop density can enhance agricultural
productivity.
Importance of Agriculture to the Environment

When agriculture is carried out in an

environmentally-friendly way, it can positively
impact the environment. The importance of
agriculture to the environment is based on:

1) Soil fertility: One of sustainable agriculture's

main goals is to improve soil fertility. This can
be done by innovative methods of planting
crops, such as intercropping, crop rotation,
cover cropping, and the use of compost.
Healthy soils lay a solid foundation for
producers of surrounding ecosystems.
 Importance of Agriculture to the
Environment
2) Ecosystem preservation: in many
regions, ecosystems struggle to flourish in
harsh climatic conditions. But with
effective agricultural practices, the
foundations of the ecosystems (such as
pastures and crops) can be sustained.
 Importance of Agriculture
to the Environment
3) Habitat creation: considerate
agriculture, which invites species
to build ecosystems around
farms, is a fantastic way of
creating habitats. For example,
cultivating hedgerows and
wildflower meadows around
farms can attract
many pollinators, and leaving
waterlogged patches in between
fields can improve connectivity
between aquatic ecosystems.
 Importance of Agriculture
to the Environment
4) Global producer populations:
planting crops in agriculture
increases global producer
populations, meaning there is more
carbon dioxide absorbed from the
atmosphere by photosynthetic
producers.
 Importance of Agriculture
to the Environment
5) Ecological succession: many species
fail to thrive in certain areas because
they depend on an early stage of
landscape (such as open meadows
for pollinators). These habitats cannot
be maintained naturally and will
overgrow, so agriculture allows
selective species to thrive in more
areas.