Today we hear more and more about soilless cultivation, whether
hydroponic or aeroponic or aquaponic or on substrate, as a possibility
to face the problems related to climate change that, day by day, become
more pressing. It is legitimate to ask whether this is a real
alternative. ---- Soilless cultivation is a method in which plants,
after an initial start on inert substrates, such as coconut fiber,
expanded clay, perlite or other, move on to: cultivation in water in the
case of hydroponic or in air in the case of aeroponic or in water, but
with an integrated system to aquaculture, in the case of aquaponic or on
a substrate but always soilless. These systems, say the producers, have
the advantage of developing vertically on overlapping levels, with a
reduction in the surface area used, have a low water consumption,
therefore they are considered sustainable, and have less need for
treatments. These are the supposed positive aspects, but there are
others that must be taken into account. First of all, the systems for
this type of cultivation are very expensive and must be built by
specialized technicians as they require sophisticated equipment for the
control and stabilization of the main chemical-physical parameters, such
as temperature, humidity, lighting, oxygenation, ventilation, as well as
many aspects of the nutrient solution such as adequate chemical
composition, pH, electrical conductivity, etc. The devices must then
work twenty-four hours a day, as nothing can be left to chance if you do
not want to damage the health of the plants and risk losing production.
This requirement requires the presence of expensive generators capable
of intervening in the event of a power failure. To the initial costs,
you must also add the management costs, which are higher than those of
field cultivation. Which means that, assuming the spread of large-scale
out-of-field cultivation, only companies with large capital would be
able to use them and, furthermore, the unit cost of the products
obtained would be higher than those grown on the ground. If this type of
cultivation were to supplant the others, we would see an increase in
hydrogeological instability and its consequences for the reduction of
cultivated soil, when today a third of the world's soil is already
subject to degradation and in Italy in the last 25 years 28% of arable
land has been lost.
As regards considering soil-less crops sustainable, sustainability
refers only to water consumption, water which is not only that of the
nutrient solution, which must be replaced regularly, but also that used
to clean the various parts of the system that could clog. We can talk
about low environmental impact only because we forget the greenhouse gas
emissions due to the high use of energy to produce, build and manage the
plants as well as to dispose of substrates, solutions, materials used of
various types and often difficult to recycle. After all, the water used
in the nutrient solutions must be of excellent quality, with very low
salinity and requires sterilization as its circulation through the
system could quickly convey contaminants. In soilless systems, the high
humidity level actually favors the development of fungal diseases, such
as verticillium wilt, which spread rapidly due to the peculiarity of the
system. Plants grown without soil are also less resistant because there
is no soil and the myriad of microorganisms residing in the same habitat
to slow down the attack of pathogenic microorganisms, protect the roots
from temperature changes, absorb and release substances. Furthermore,
forcing the system, due to the use of high quantities of synthetic
nutrients that speed up the growth process by altering its normal
rhythms, further reduces the adaptive capacity and resistance to
pathogens in plants and requires the use of specific pesticides of
various types, already widely present on the market, denying the rumor
that these crops are healthier.
Another aspect to consider is the loss of biodiversity linked to the
fact that the particularity of the growth conditions, making the plants
less resistant, requires the use of selected and often hybrid cultivars,
when not genetically modified. If these varieties were to spread, there
would be a further loss of numerous native species, already in sharp
decline, given that of the more than thirty thousand edible species,
seven thousand of which have fed man throughout history, today only
thirty are those that provide 90% of the calories to the human species
and 50% of the caloric intake comes from just three species, rice, wheat
and corn.
Finally, we must consider the flavor of vegetables, a flavor that
depends on taste (balance between sweetness, sourness and acidity) and
aroma (due to volatile compounds perceived by smell) that are influenced
by multiple factors such as the nature of the soil, characteristics of
irrigation water, amount of heat and light, exposure, proximity to
particular environments such as marine environments, interaction with
living beings present in the environment, etc. Can we ever think of
artificially reproducing all these variables and the many others that we
don't even know about? Not to mention the fact that the content of
nutrients also depends on the production methods and if today the
vegetables that come from intensive cultivation are already poor in
nutrients, what will those that come from techniques that further speed
up the process contain?
In conclusion, if today the problems we are facing are due to the fact
that we have wanted to deny the importance of the balances existing
between the natural habitat and the various species of living beings, do
we really think we can solve these problems by further severing the ties
between our species, the others present on earth and the natural habitat
that hosts us all or perhaps the direction to take is that of a
rediscovery and re-evaluation of these ties in an attempt to find a new
balance that allows the planet to continue to be a home for everyone? Do
we really think that the right path is to destroy agriculture and the
custodian farmers?
Brunella Missorici
http://sicilialibertaria.it
_________________________________________
A - I N F O S N E W S S E R V I C E
By, For, and About Anarchists
Send news reports to A-infos-en mailing list
A-infos-en@ainfos.ca
hydroponic or aeroponic or aquaponic or on substrate, as a possibility
to face the problems related to climate change that, day by day, become
more pressing. It is legitimate to ask whether this is a real
alternative. ---- Soilless cultivation is a method in which plants,
after an initial start on inert substrates, such as coconut fiber,
expanded clay, perlite or other, move on to: cultivation in water in the
case of hydroponic or in air in the case of aeroponic or in water, but
with an integrated system to aquaculture, in the case of aquaponic or on
a substrate but always soilless. These systems, say the producers, have
the advantage of developing vertically on overlapping levels, with a
reduction in the surface area used, have a low water consumption,
therefore they are considered sustainable, and have less need for
treatments. These are the supposed positive aspects, but there are
others that must be taken into account. First of all, the systems for
this type of cultivation are very expensive and must be built by
specialized technicians as they require sophisticated equipment for the
control and stabilization of the main chemical-physical parameters, such
as temperature, humidity, lighting, oxygenation, ventilation, as well as
many aspects of the nutrient solution such as adequate chemical
composition, pH, electrical conductivity, etc. The devices must then
work twenty-four hours a day, as nothing can be left to chance if you do
not want to damage the health of the plants and risk losing production.
This requirement requires the presence of expensive generators capable
of intervening in the event of a power failure. To the initial costs,
you must also add the management costs, which are higher than those of
field cultivation. Which means that, assuming the spread of large-scale
out-of-field cultivation, only companies with large capital would be
able to use them and, furthermore, the unit cost of the products
obtained would be higher than those grown on the ground. If this type of
cultivation were to supplant the others, we would see an increase in
hydrogeological instability and its consequences for the reduction of
cultivated soil, when today a third of the world's soil is already
subject to degradation and in Italy in the last 25 years 28% of arable
land has been lost.
As regards considering soil-less crops sustainable, sustainability
refers only to water consumption, water which is not only that of the
nutrient solution, which must be replaced regularly, but also that used
to clean the various parts of the system that could clog. We can talk
about low environmental impact only because we forget the greenhouse gas
emissions due to the high use of energy to produce, build and manage the
plants as well as to dispose of substrates, solutions, materials used of
various types and often difficult to recycle. After all, the water used
in the nutrient solutions must be of excellent quality, with very low
salinity and requires sterilization as its circulation through the
system could quickly convey contaminants. In soilless systems, the high
humidity level actually favors the development of fungal diseases, such
as verticillium wilt, which spread rapidly due to the peculiarity of the
system. Plants grown without soil are also less resistant because there
is no soil and the myriad of microorganisms residing in the same habitat
to slow down the attack of pathogenic microorganisms, protect the roots
from temperature changes, absorb and release substances. Furthermore,
forcing the system, due to the use of high quantities of synthetic
nutrients that speed up the growth process by altering its normal
rhythms, further reduces the adaptive capacity and resistance to
pathogens in plants and requires the use of specific pesticides of
various types, already widely present on the market, denying the rumor
that these crops are healthier.
Another aspect to consider is the loss of biodiversity linked to the
fact that the particularity of the growth conditions, making the plants
less resistant, requires the use of selected and often hybrid cultivars,
when not genetically modified. If these varieties were to spread, there
would be a further loss of numerous native species, already in sharp
decline, given that of the more than thirty thousand edible species,
seven thousand of which have fed man throughout history, today only
thirty are those that provide 90% of the calories to the human species
and 50% of the caloric intake comes from just three species, rice, wheat
and corn.
Finally, we must consider the flavor of vegetables, a flavor that
depends on taste (balance between sweetness, sourness and acidity) and
aroma (due to volatile compounds perceived by smell) that are influenced
by multiple factors such as the nature of the soil, characteristics of
irrigation water, amount of heat and light, exposure, proximity to
particular environments such as marine environments, interaction with
living beings present in the environment, etc. Can we ever think of
artificially reproducing all these variables and the many others that we
don't even know about? Not to mention the fact that the content of
nutrients also depends on the production methods and if today the
vegetables that come from intensive cultivation are already poor in
nutrients, what will those that come from techniques that further speed
up the process contain?
In conclusion, if today the problems we are facing are due to the fact
that we have wanted to deny the importance of the balances existing
between the natural habitat and the various species of living beings, do
we really think we can solve these problems by further severing the ties
between our species, the others present on earth and the natural habitat
that hosts us all or perhaps the direction to take is that of a
rediscovery and re-evaluation of these ties in an attempt to find a new
balance that allows the planet to continue to be a home for everyone? Do
we really think that the right path is to destroy agriculture and the
custodian farmers?
Brunella Missorici
http://sicilialibertaria.it
_________________________________________
A - I N F O S N E W S S E R V I C E
By, For, and About Anarchists
Send news reports to A-infos-en mailing list
A-infos-en@ainfos.ca
Geen opmerkingen:
Een reactie posten