Impact Of Agricultural Changes Research Articles

The Impact of Agricultural Environmental Pollutions on the Population’s Quality of Life. The Experience of Kazakhstan

The purpose of the present study is analyzing the trends of agricultural pollutions and their impact on the health of the population of the Republic of Kazakhstan. The main research methods include a bibliographic review of the literature on the research subject, as well as qualitative and quantitative analysis of statistical indicators of agricultural production development, and the dynamics of agroecological indicators of the Republic of Kazakhstan. To assess the impact of agricultural changes on the quality of life associated with the health of the population, the analysis of secondary data of sociological research conducted by the Environmental Fund of Kazakhstan was carried out. The results of the study show that since 1999 the agriculture of the Republic of Kazakhstan has undergone structural changes which are characterized by active mechanization, intensification, and specialization. At the same time, the widespread use of fertilizers and pesticides, as well as irrigation, the growth of pollution from livestock, and the employment of heavy machinery have adverse effects on water and soil.

The Phosphorus Indicators Tool: a simple model of diffuse P loss from agricultural land to water

Abstract. The Phosphorus Indicators Tool provides a catchment‐scale estimation of diffuse phosphorus (P) loss from agricultural land to surface waters using the most appropriate indicators of P loss. The Tool provides a framework that may be applied across the UK to estimate P loss, which is sensitive not only to land use and management but also to environmental factors such as climate, soil type and topography. The model complexity incorporated in the P Indicators Tool has been adapted to the level of detail in the available data and the need to reflect the impact of changes in agriculture. Currently, the Tool runs on an annual timestep and at a 1 km2 grid scale.We demonstrate that the P Indicators Tool works in principle and that its modular structure provides a means of accounting for P loss from one layer to the next, and ultimately to receiving waters. Trial runs of the Tool suggest that modelled P delivery to water approximates measured water quality records. The transparency of the structure of the P Indicators Tool means that identification of poorly performing coefficients is possible, and further refinements of the Tool can be made to ensure it is better calibrated and subsequently validated against empirical data, as it becomes available.

Factors controlling plant diversity in a rural landscape: a functional approach

Grassland plant diversity was studied in a rural landscape of the Seine valley, composed of several agro-ecological units resulting from the strong correlation between spatial patterns of habitat and land-use. These units are located along a topographical gradient in the valley. The mosaic of species assemblage in this landscape is considered to result from environmental and agricultural factors acting as an environmental filter on the initial species pool. Changes in pattern, such as those observed in our study site, will inevitably alter this mosaic. Measurements of biodiversity can be used as a tool to link landscape changes to community structure, and thus to assess the impact of agricultural changes. This paper discusses the scale at which biodiversity should be measured for management purposes.

Effects of agricultural change on nesting LapwingsVanellus vanellusin England and Wales

The impact of agricultural change on the nesting of Lapwings in England and Wales between 1962 and 1985 was analysed using nest-record cards of the BTO. Habitat use changed over the period with a general increase in nesting in upland grass. There was no change in the timing of nesting in grass, although apparently it was earlier than between 1940–61; more later nests were recorded in tillage. Overall clutch size showed no change between 1962–85, but clutches were consistently larger in tillage because of fewer partial losses. Larger clutches were found in emerged tillage crops than newly tilled land, and unimproved compared with improved grassland. There were also regional variations in clutch size in grassland. Brood size at hatching showed a progressive decline through the period because of steadily rising losses to farming. Nests in cereal and bare tilth were by far the most successful, and least successful in bare plough and upland grass. Agriculture (farmwork and the presence of farm animals) caused the loss of 19% of all nests for which a result was known compared w. ith 12% between 1940 and 1961. Robbery by man had declined sharply since 1961, but desertion in grassland had doubled. A rise in nest losses to cultivations in tillage was related to higher March rainfall. Overall nesting performance in upland grass is now very poor because of greatly increased stocking rates. Not only are more nests lost to trampling and grassland cultivations, but increased numbers of cattle also cause more desertions. Nesting performance is much better in tillage, but the loss of spring tilled land to autumn cereals has severely limited good nesting opportunities.

THE IMPACT OF CHANGES IN AGRICULTURE ON POLITICAL LIFE IN THE NORTH AMERICAN REGION

SummaryThe Impact of Changes in Agriculture on Political Life in the North American RegionThis paper follows a general approach to the above topic, although agricultural change in the English‐speaking Carribean nations has not progressed in the same manner as in the United States and Canada. Three general areas of social change are reviewed. These include: 1. Changes in the relationship of people to the land, 2. Changes in the interpersonal relations of ruralites, 3. Changes in rural social institutions.The impact of change on political institutions is described at both the local and national level. At the local level, increasing demands for improvements in services, increasing use of technology, and an evergrowing demand for subsidy, credit, and welfare programs have served to modify the traditional autonomous, familistic patterns of government to more centralized and integrated operations.At the national level, the changing political scene is analyzed in terms of four sources of power which have been traditional with agricultural systems. First, the legislative power of agriculture is diminishing as the farm vote drops and rural‐oriented legislators are retired. Second, agricultural political power derived from championing a ‘grassroots ideology’ is being lost in an emerging urban‐industrial ideology. Third, agriculture is having to form coalitions and compromises with many new and diverse groups which could be ignored in past power struggles. Finally, the emerging source of political power of agricultural systems, is seen most clearly in its control of the ‘expertise’ in food and fiber production.

First World Congress of Rural Sociology

The main theme of this Congress, held in the cité universitaire in Dijon, was the impact of agricultural changes on society in developed and developing countries. The modernisation of agriculture (industrialisation, commercialisation, decrease of manpower, increase of production per capita) is accompanied by a set of changes which affects not only the rural population itself; but also human society as a whole. Technological and economic changes have an influence on cultural and social structure. The Congress aimed to study this influence with emphasis on the effects on society as a whole, and to compare the experiences of developed and developing countries.