Climate change and water scarcity have emerged
as cross-cutting concerns for agriculture that clearly
require the actions of a coordinated public and
private governance yet here too, the urgency has
resulted in very little pragmatic action. Nevertheless,
the recognition of agriculture’s powerful role in the
ecosystem makes it more important than ever.
Concern for the wise stewardship of natural
resources has made headlines globally and
science now better understands the tightly woven
interplay within and downstream of agricultural
systems. In recent decades improved conservation
practices in soil and water as well as better targeted
formulation and application of fertilizers and less
toxic agrochemicals have improved the ecological
footprint of agriculture. However, the level of change
in otherwise unsustainable agricultural practices
has certainly not evolved sufficiently to permit
our intensive agriculture practices to co-exist in a
reasonable balance with nature.
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In fact, allowing
the environmental costs to be externalized creates
incentives to take shortcuts that compromise our
resources and our environment.