A
study presented by Professor John Crawford at the recent Carbon Farming
Conference held in New South Wales, Australia, focused on the dangerous
loss of topsoil throughout the world.
Some 75 billion tons are
being eroded annually through a combination of agricultural
mismanagement and climate change effects, with livestock grazing also
causing significant losses.
In the United States alone, 54% of
pasture land is overgrazed, with more than 100 tons of topsoil being
lost per hectare per year. At the current rates, experts say that
recent events such as the major dust storms in Australia will become
more and more frequent, with a vanishing of the resource within
decades.
Saying that restorative actions are needed now,
Professor Crawford recommended a combination of practices, including
organic farming methods to help rebuild and replace carbon in the soil.
Dr. Crawford and associates, we are grateful for your research
that highlights the value of this imperiled natural resource. May such
information motivate more and more people to adopt lifestyles that
protect the Earth for ourselves and future generations.
Supreme
Master Ching Hai, who frequently reminds of humanity’s crucial role in
environmental conservation, spoke of the benefits of organic vegan
farming during an interview for the September 2009 edition of The House
Magazine.
Supreme Master Ching Hai:
There are so many benefits from organic vegan farming, as well as many
benefiting parties. First, for the farmers, organic vegan farming is
productive, saving 37% more energy and even more water than
conventional farming methods.
Next, there are environmental
benefits, like the topsoil stays and proves better at withstanding
floods and hurricanes. Furthermore, organic vegan farming will halt the
runoff of chemical fertilizers that have created monstrous dead zones
in the ocean.
Organic soil matter also absorbs CO2 so
effectively that the Rodale Institute calls organic vegan farming a
powerful strategy to reduce global warming, by up to 40% of all CO2
emissions now in the atmosphere.
Finally, we all benefit from
better health because it’s free of toxins and abundant in nutrients,
without the genetic modification and cancer-causing pesticides.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/agriculture/farming/6828878/Britain-facing-food-crisis-as-worlds-soil-vanishes-in-60-years.htmlhttp://carbonfarming.blogspot.com/http://cspinet.org/EatingGreen/pdf/arguments3.pdfhttp://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2009/sep/24/topsoil-farming-defra