SUSTAINABLE

DEVELOPMENT IN
AGRICULTURAL &
INDUSTRIAL SECTOR
Submitted to: Sir. Zafar Rashid

[Pick the date]

Submitted By: Pakeeza Bukhari
BSIEM 5th Semester (Roll No: 17)
 SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT IN AGRICULTURAL
SECTOR:
SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE:
Sustainable agriculture can be viewed as ecosystem management of complex interactions among
soil, water, plants, animals, climate, and people. The goal is to integrate all these factors into a
production system that is appropriate for the environment, the people, and the economic
conditions where the farm is located. Farms become and stay environmentally sustainable by
imitating natural systems—creating a farm landscape that mimics as closely as possible the
complexity of healthy ecosystems.
Nature tends to function in cycles, so that waste from one process or system becomes input for
another.

COMPARISON OF SUSTAINABLE & INDUSTRIAL AGRICULTURE:

Industrial agriculture, in contrast, tends to function in a linear fashion similar to a factory: inputs
go in one end, and products and waste come out the other. The wastes of industrial agriculture
(non-point-source pollution) include suspended soil, nitrates, and phosphates in stream water,
and nitrates and pesticides in ground water. It is a premise of sustainable agriculture that a farm
is a nature-based system, not a factory. The simpler we try to make agriculture, the more
vulnerable we become to natural disasters and marketplace changes. When we try to produce a
single product such as wheat, corn, or soybeans we are taking on huge risk. If instead we,
diversify crops and integrate plant and animal agriculture, overhead will be spread over several
enterprises, reducing risk and increasing profit. Table 1 offers some comparisons between two
models of agriculture—farming as an industrial factory and farming as a biological system.

Comparison of the Industrial and

Biological Models of Agriculture

Industrial model Biological model

Energy intensive Information intensive

Farm as factory Farm as ecosystem

Monoculture Diversity of plants and animals

Low-value products Higher-value products

Single-use equipment Multiple-use equipment

Linear process Cyclical

Enterprise separation Enterprise integration

STRATEGIES FOR EMPLOYING SUSTAINABLE

DEVELOPMENT IN AGRICULTURAL SECTOR:
i) STRIVE TO KEEP THE SOIL COVERED THROUGHOUT THE YEAR
Under natural conditions the soil remains covered with a skin of dead plant material, which
moderates temperature extremes, increases water penetration and storage, and enhances soil
aeration. Most importantly, the soil skin maintains oil structure and prevents erosion by softening
the impact of falling raindrops. Bare ground, on the other hand, is vulnerable to water and wind
erosion, dries out more quickly, and loses organic matter rapidly. The major productivity costs
associated with soil erosion come from the replacement of lost nutrients and reduced water
holding ability, accounting for 50 to 75% of productivity loss (Pimentel et al., 1995). Soil
removed by erosion typically contains about three times more nutrients than the soil left behind
and is 1.5 to 5 times richer in organic matter (Pimentel et al., 1995). This organic matter loss not
only results in reduced water holding capacity and degraded soil aggregation, but also loss of
plant nutrients, which must then be replaced with fertilizers. Five tons of topsoil (the USDA
"tolerance level" for erosion) can easily contain 100 pounds of nitrogen, 60 pounds of phosphate,
45 pounds of potash, 2 pounds of calcium, 10 pounds of magnesium, and 8 pounds of sulfur.
Table 3 shows the effect of slight, moderate, and severe erosion on organic matter, soil
phosphorus level, and plant available water on a silt loam soil in Indiana.

EFFECT OF EROSION ON ORGANIC MATTER,

PHOSPHORUS, AND PLANT-AVAILABLE WATER

Erosion level Organic matter Phosphorus Plant-available water

℅ lbs/ac ℅
Slight 3 62 7.4
Moderate 2.1 65 62
Severe 1.9 40 3.6

ii) AVOID MOLDBOARD PLOWING AT ALL COSTS

Soil is damaged considerably whenever it is turned over. The moldboard plow brings subsoil to
the surface and buries the crop residue layer so deep it is unable to decay properly. Virtually no
soil residue is left on the surface, exposing the soil to erosion and impairing the water and
mineral cycles. Today, millions of acres are being farmed without any tillage at all (notill) or in
such a way that adequate groundcover remains afterwards (ridge till, zone till, minimum till).
Production systems that reduce or eliminate tillage in a manner consistent with effective weed
control foster the four ecosystem processes discussed above.

iii) DIVERSIFY
Optimum diversity may be obtained by integrating both crops and livestock in the same farming
operation. This was the common practice for centuries until the mid-1900s when technology,
government policy and economics compelled farms to become more specialized. Mixed crop and
livestock operations have several advantages. First, growing row crops only on more level land
and pasture or forages on steeper slopes will reduce soil erosion. Second, pasture and forage
crops in rotation enhance soil quality and reduce erosion; livestock manure, in turn, contributes
to soil fertility. Third, livestock can buffer the negative impacts of low rainfall periods by
consuming crop residue that in "plant only" systems would have been considered crop failures.

iv) ROTATE CROPS

Moving from simple monoculture to a higher level of diversity begins with crop rotations, which
break weed and pest life cycles, provide complementary fertilization to crops in sequence with
each other—nitrogen-fixing legume crops preceding grain crops such as corn—and prevent
buildup of pest insects and weeds. In many cases, yield increases follow from the "rotation
effect." Including forage crops in the rotation will reduce soil erosion and increase soil quality.
When planning crop rotations, it is important to consider that cultivated row crops—such as corn
and soybeans or vegetables— tend to be soil degrading. Since the soil is open and cultivated
between rows, microbes break down organic matter at a more rapid pace. Furthermore, row
crops have modest root systems and consequently do not contribute enough new organic matter
to replace that lost from the open soil between rows; in most cases above-ground crop residues
make only minor contributions to replacing lost organic matter. Cereals and other crops
(including annual green manures) planted with a grain drill or broadcast-seeded are more closely
spaced and have more extensive root systems than row crops, greatly reducing the amount of soil
exposed to degradation. In addition, they receive little or no cultivation after planting, which
reduces organic- matter loss even more. As a result, cereals and green manures can be considered
neutral crops, replacing soil organic matter at roughly the same rate at which it breaks down.
Crops that make a perennial sod cover—such as grasses, clovers, and alfalfa—not only keep the
soil entirely covered, but also have massive root systems, producing far more organic matter than
is lost. Sod crops are the best soil-building crops— they can heal the damage done to soil by row
cropping.
 v) COMPOSTS, MANURES, AND FERTILIZERS
Crop rotations, cover-cropping, and green manuring are key strategies for soil building, which is
the foundation of sustainable farming. However, modern production systems place high
demands on land resources, requiring additional attention to soil fertility management. .Manures
and composts, especially those produced on-farm or available locally at low cost, are ideal
resources for cycling nutrients on-farm. From the standpoint of overall soil and crophealth,
composts or aged manures are preferred. Compost has a unique advantage in comparisonto
unaged manure and other organic soil amendmentsin that it has a (usually) predictable, and
nearly ideal, ratio of carbon to nitrogen (Parnes, 1990).
Compost has some particular advantages in row crop production, especially when used in
conjunction with cover crops and green manures. In sandy soils, compost's stable organic
matter is especially effective at absorbing and retaining water. Fresh plant material
incorporated as green manure, on the other hand, retains its waxy leaf coating and cannot
perform the same function until thoroughly digested by microbes. There are several conventional
fertilizers that should be avoided in sustainable farming because of their harmful effects on soil
organisms and structure. These include anhydrous ammonia and potassium chloride.
Some of the more "environmentally friendly" chemical fertilizers such as mono-ammonium
phosphate (12-50-0), commonly called MAP, may also have a role in the transition away from
the harsher chemical fertilizers. Significant additions of lime, rock phosphate, and other
fertilizers should be guided by soil testing to avoid soil imbalances and unnecessary expenditure
on inputs.

vi) INSECT PEST MANAGEMENT

Insect pests can have a serious impact on farm income. In ecologically balanced farm production
systems, insect pests are always present, but massive outbreaks resulting in severe economic
damage are minimized. This results in good part from the presence of natural control agents—
especially predatory and parasitic insects, mites, and spiders—that keep pest populations in
check. The primary goal of IPM is to give growers management guidelines in order to make pest
control as economically and ecologically sound as possible.
IPM integrates habitat modification and cultural, physical, biological, and chemical practices to
minimize crop losses. IPM programs tend to go through three phases, with each stage using and
building on previous knowledge and techniques (Ferro, 1993):
a) The pesticide management phase, characterized by establishing economic thresholds,
sampling, and spraying as needed.
b) The cultural management phase, based on a thorough understanding of the pest's biology and
its relationship to the cropping system. Tactics employed to control pests include delayed
planting dates, crop rotation, altered harvest dates, etc.
c) The biological control phase, or "bio-intensive IPM," requires thorough understanding of the
biology of natural enemies (in addition to that of the pest) and an ability to measure how
effective these agents are in controlling pests. When natural agents do not meet expected goals,
the IPM practitioner uses "soft" pesticides (relatively non-toxic to nontarget organisms), and
times applications for minimal impact on beneficials.

LISTING OF TOOLS BY THEIR EFFECT ON

Increased → Intercropping →Crop rotation →Cover crops →Multispecies grazing
Biodiversity
Decreased → Monocropping →Tillage →Herbicides → Insecticides
Biodiversity

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT & ITS

STRATEGIES IN INDUSTRIAL SECTOR :
a) ECOLOGICALLY SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT THROUGH
RECYCLING:
In the past industry put economic growth before ecological responsibility; it is every individual's
responsibility to be concerned with the condition of the environment. Ecologically sustainable
development allows for efficiency and making profits without wasting the earth's natural
resources. Thanks to an awareness of ecologically sustainable development, companies have
found ways to manufacture products, without harming the environment. Because of ecologically
sustainable development more companies are going green to preserve the earth for generations to
come.

i) RECYCLING WITHIN INDUSTRIAL PROCESSES:

Recycling may take place within industrial processe. Some examples are:
• Collection of & reforging of cuttings from metal milling operations
• Buning of trim ends in saw mills to produce heat
• Reuse of cooling water
• Recycling plastic bottles

i) RECYCLING PLASTIC PRODUCTS:

The plastic industry is among the leading producers of hazardous waste.Most plastics are
nondegradable or take 200-400 years to degrade. In landfills, toxic cadmium & lead compounds
used as binders, colorants, and heat stabilizers can leach out of plastics into ground water &
surface water.
Plastic soft drink bottles made up of PET can be melted & remanufactured into carpet, fleece
clothing, plastic strapping, and nonfood packaging. Plastic recycling could save 50 to 60 percent
of the energy needed to make new ones.

ii) CLOTHING INDUSTRY:

Recently the clothing industry has applied ecologically sustainable development by
manufacturing clothing from recycled plastics. Many of the fabrics we wear are made from
polyester, which is nothing more than plastic that has been spun into fibers. The fabric making
industry has employed ecologically sustainable development to produce goods, make profits, and
diverted tons of plastic bottles from being buried in landfills around the world.

iv) RECYCLED AL CANS:

Old aluminium cans are usually melted & recasted into new cans. It utilizes less than 10℅ of
energy required to process the same amount of Al from Bauxite.

v) RECYCLED PAPER:
Companies that manufacture products from recycled paper save trees from being cut down,
cuts down on air pollution, and diverts tons of used paper from landfills. Normally paper that has
not been recycled is made by treating wood chips with heat and pressure and toxic chemicals.
The wood chips are pressed into paper, and toxic chemicals are wasted into the rivers. The
chemicals that are emitted from heating the wood chips are released into the atmosphere from
tall smoke stacks. Paper making companies are employing ecologically sustainable development
by milling recycled paper, rather than making paper from scratch. If not for recycled paper
products the earth would be one big landfill by now.

a) REUSE:
Even better than recycling or compositing os clening & reusing materials in present form, thus
saving cost & energy of making them into something else.
One example is reusing glass & plastic bottles after washing & refilling.
The reuseable, refillable bottle is the most efficient beverage container we have. It is better for
environment than remelting.

b) NEW BETTER PROCESSES THAN OLDER PROCESSES:

Processes that have a renewable source source & are energy efficient must be used for
manufacturing. Some examples for better technologies with the reason for shiftage are:

i) ALCOHOL MANUFACTUING
Before alcool was made by using purified ethylene in a stainless steel reactor . The process
required a temperature of 2800c & a catalyst h3po4 . the process was
energy intensive & source was non renewable(petroleum).
Now alcohol is made by using molasses from sugar cane. The process requires a pH of 4.5 , a
temperature of 350C & yeast.
This process is more preferable because it is less energy intensive a source is renewable.

ii) PVC MANUFACTURE :

Another example is of PVC manufacture.which is formed by polymerization of vinyl chloride. It
reuire a catalyst. Previously Hg was used
But now Ti is used a catalyst for the process.

a) SUSTAINABLE NEW PRODUCTS :

Products that are biodegradable, less persistant & more environment friendly must be
manufactured. Some examples are:
 • Now-a-days lead pigments in paints & tennis courts are not used due to their toxicity .
Instead TiO2 due to being less toxic.
• Cholro floro carbons are not used in referigeerants due to their adverse environmental
impact. Instead environment friendly HFC’s are used.
• Now CF3cl is not preferred to use in fire extinguishers. Instead, CF3I is used which is
less persistant.
a) SUSTAINABLE PRODUCTION OF ENERGY:
Commercial energy for industries comes from extracting & burning nonrenewable resources
obtained from the earth’s crust, primarily carbon-containing fossil fuels(petroleum, natural gas,
and coal)
The industrial sector’s current dependence on nonrenewable fossil fuels is primary cause of air &
water pollution, land disruptions, and green house gas emissions. Moreover oil, the most widely
used energy resource in developed countries will be depleted within 42-93 years.
Our best immediate energy option is to cut out unnecessary energy waste by improving energy
efficiency. Also we should get more enrgy from a mix of renewable sources such as
• Sun
• Wind
• Biomass
• Wastewater
• Biofuel
• Biogas
i) WIND ENERGY:
Airflows can be used to run wind turbines. Modern wind turbines range from around 600 kW to
5 MW of rated power, although turbines with rated output of 1.5–3 MW have become the most
common for commercial use; the power output of a turbine is a function of the cube of the wind
speed, so as wind speed increases, power output increases dramatically.[15] Areas where winds
are stronger and more constant, such as offshore and high altitude sites, are preferred locations
for wind farms.
Wind power is renewable and produces no greenhouse gases during operation, such as carbon
dioxide and methane.

i) WASTEWATER
Power can also be obtained from sewage water. The technique used herefore are Microbial fuel
cells. Also using the same microbial fuel cells, instead of from wastewater, energy may also be
obtained directly from (certain) aquatic plants. These include reed sweetgrass, cordgrass, rice,
tomatoes, lupines, algae.

ii) BIOFUEL
Plants use photosynthesis to grow and produce biomass. Also known as biomatter, biomass can
be used directly as fuel or to produce biofuels. Agriculturally produced biomass fuels, such as
biodiesel, ethanol and bagasses(often a by-product of sugar cane cultivation) can be burned in
internal combustion engines or boilers. Typically biofuel is burned to release its stored chemical
energy. Research into more efficient methods of converting biofuels and other fuels into
electricity utilizing fuel cells is an area of very active work.

iii) BIOMASS
 Solid biomass is mostly commonly usually used directly as a combustible fuel, producing 10-20
MJ/kg of heat. Biomass can also be used to feed bacteria, which can tranform it in another form
of energy such as hydrogen, using a process called Fermentative hydrogen production.
Its forms and sources include wood fuel, the biogenic portion of municipal solid waste, or the
unused portion of field crops. Field crops may or may not be grown intentionally as an energy
crop, and the remaining plant byproduct used as a fuel. Most types of biomass contain energy.
Even cow manure still contains two-thirds of the original energy consumed by the cow. Energy
harvesting via a bioreactor is a cost-effective solution to the waste disposal issues faced by the
dairy farmer, and can produce enough biogas to run a farm.

iv) SOLAR ENERGY

In this context, "solar energy" refers to energy that is collected from sunlight. Solar energy can
be applied in many ways, including to:
• Generate electricity using photovoltaic solar cells.
• Generate electricity using concentrated solar power.
• Generate electricity by heating trapped air which rotates turbines in a Solar updraft tower.
• Generate electricity in geosynchronous orbit using solar power satellites.
• Generate hydrogen using photoelectrochemical cells.
• Heat water or air for domestic hot water and space heating needs using solar-thermal
panels.
• Solar air conditioning

i) BIOGAS:
Biogas can easily be produced from current waste streams, such as paper production, sugar
production, sewage, animal waste and so forth. These various waste streams have to be slurried
together and allowed to naturally ferment, producing methane gas. This can be done by
converting current sewage plants into biogas plants. When a biogas plant has extracted all the
methane it can, the remains are sometimes more suitable as fertilizer than the original biomass.
Alternatively biogas can be produced via advanced waste processing systems such as mechanical
biological treatment. These systems recover the recyclable elements of household waste and
process the biodegradable fraction in anaerobic digesters.

REFERENCES:

• Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

• Fundamentals of sustainable agriculture By Preston Sullivan from www.attara.ncat.org
• Environmental science by William.P.Cunningham
• Living in environment by G.Taylor miller,Jr.