Portfolio Task 5 Part A: In your questioning you may wish to include topics on erosion, his involvement in shaping the land, the farms water runoff or irrigation methods used. Question 1. Me: Can you please state what plant growth regulator you use on your crops? Many can harm the roots of the vegetation and loosen them, causing the soils to be easily carried away by the river. Farmer: I use Ethephon, which I have heard can be found in a variety of commercial herbicides. Me: Ethephon contains bacteria which are harmful towards the specific turf that you are cultivating. Due to the bacteria, the roots of your florae will eventually loosen to the point where the soils will drop into the river. This will add to the build-up of sediments. Ultimately, the contaminated river will cause blockage. The ecosystem living in the body of water would die off or be forced to migrate. …show more content…
Me: In your opinion, what factors do you consider to be the reason the runoff is having a negative impact on the environment? Farmer: I am not entirely sure. A factor I have taken into consideration was the idea that I am applying a large amount of pesticides on the turf. Me: Due to the fact that there is no compact vegetation on this farm, the chances of a larger runoff are higher. Pesticides and other hazardous chemicals used on the grass flow into the river during a major flood. Products such as these damage and harm the ecosystem living in that particular body of water. In the long run, people who depend on fish for their main source of protein and their economic livelihood is
A centerpiece of the water quality battle is the North Raccoon, where the water runoff from farms is ruining the river. In the article, “The North Raccoon: A River of Controversy and Undiscovered Beauty,” Mike Kilen (2017) claims, Steve Roe of Panora
Northwest Coalition for Alternatives to Pesticides (NCAP) (Winter 1992). Malathion Insecticide Factsheet. Journal of Pesticide Reform 12(4). Retrieved May 4, 2008, from
Extensive amounts of litter were observed both in (figure 8) and around the creek, this aspect of human interaction clearly is degrative within this environment Increased flood risk due to surface impermeability this disrupts the water cycle and increases subsequent erosion
The Colorado River compact has been the most beneficial project for the seven states that share it. The river has 29 dams that serve different purposes together with hundreds of miles of canals. Many farmers have been known to divert the river into their own farms to be used for irrigation. Irrigated land accounts for four million acres of the total land use. This relates to a large percentage of water used for agriculture. The products got from constant irrigation are a major economic boost to both the farmers and the United States. This also enhances living standards due to income earned by such farmers (Michael, 2010). This has enabled them to feed not only their states, but also the other neighboring countries through
The Basin’s water use is for agriculture. Most of the irrigated area is used to grow crops and food. Some crops such as vegetables, fruit and nuts harvest high prices for not much water use, but others crops such as rice yield lower value for high levels of water use.
In Mount Judea, Arkansas, there lies a hog farm very close to the historic Buffalo River, known for its natural beauty and amazing sightseeing. On the contrast, immense amounts of green algae have been found in its water in the past few years. As a result, suspicions have been expected with the possibility of the hog manure ponds leaking into the Buffalo River. This is an enormous environmental problem, as endangering a natural, free-flowing river is constrained in any aspect. The Big Creek Research and Extension Team (BCRET) from the University of Arkansas have recently drilled deep into these manure ponds in search of a leak and have accomplished their goal. (TFW). Around 120 feet below, there lies a wet place of soil that could possibility be the cause of green algae found in the nearby river. Individuals notice how big of a problem this can become. Three women, in fact, have appealed to constrain the amount of manure spread in the nearby fields surrounding the Buffalo River. (TFW). People love to see natural beauty, which is what the Buffalo River provides. Instead, they have to burden with the fact of green algae. Green algae can affect a body of water in many ways, including the contamination of turning these
The fragility of river biome ecosystems are increasing more and more with each passing year. Development of man-made, hydraulic obstructions and pollution are two of the biggest factors putting the Missouri River at risk. Less than 70% of the planet’s longest 177 rivers are without man-made structures, such as dams. The number will only continue to increase as global populations grow and untapped rivers are targeted. Structures built on rivers negatively affect plants, animals, and especially humans, as the majority of water used by people comes from rivers. The effects of interfering with the natural flow of rivers can already be seen in the straining of the Colorado, Indus, and Yellow rivers, as they have begun to dry before reaching the sea. It is only time before the Mississippi River, which is a continuation of the Missouri River, is affected as such. The aforementioned demonstrates the expanding environmental harms rivers are facing. Backing this up, scientists have shown that disrupting a river’s natural flow patterns incredibly affects its wellbeing. For
(Socio-economic): Water wastage is now proving more difficult for farmers to farm in the California area. All from the fact that, within irrigating the water,
The rains triggered massive runoff from the state’s farms into its creeks, streams, and rivers. The event caused two problems. The first is the challenge of climate change. How to manage farmland when weather lurches from brutal drought to flooding, as it likely will with increasing frequency. The second, related challenge is the largely invisible crisis of Iowa’s topsoil, which appears to be eroding at a much higher rate than US Department of Agriculture numbers indicate and more importantly, at up to 16 times the natural soil replacement rate.
When it comes to determining how we should be responsible for the current water crisis there are many different views on who's to blame, some people that cities are to blame while others say farms waste most of the precious resource. They believe that farms should switch the way they water
The use of herbicide to maintain crops has been an unchanging figure within our farmlands, within the growing of our own food. The pumping of this pesticide isn’t only harmful towards the weeds that we wish to exterminate, but these toxins also harm our own children and animals. Texas A&M University stated, “the exposure to herbicides can produce mild symptoms, such as rashes, nausea and headaches; more dangerous symptoms, such as seizures and convulsions; and even death.” There are different ways to distribute this harmful substance, such as through a liquid base, powder, and even by premixing into fertilization products. The Department of Veterans Affairs confirmed that chloracne, which is a form of acne, is associated with Agent Orange. Agent Orange was used during the Vietnam War as a chemical weapon against the Vietnamese, the U.S. military sprayed millions of gallons of Agent Orange across Vietnam, from 1961 to 1971,
25. Which of the following is NOT an example of a BMP? A. Using erosion inhibiting fencing at construction sites. B. Performing routine maintenance on your septic system. C. Using landfill liners to trap and process liquid wastes. D. Fining companies that do not uphold pollution control measures. 26. Which of the following is NOT a benefit of vegetation in a watershed? A. Slows runoff. B. Increases soil compaction. C. Reduces raindrop splash. D. Reduces sediment runoff. Use the following graph to answer questions 27-29.
The ecosystem of the Mississippi River has deteriorated due to the exploitation of the land surrounding the river, the Mississippi River Basin, for agricultural large-scale agricultural use or agribusiness. One of the most significant contributors to the degradation of the river’s ecosystem is the utilization of synthetic fertilizers. Synthetic fertilizers were an important component of the Green Revolution, a major transformation in the way food was produced worldwide. These fertilizers applied to crops in this region, eventually runoff and find their way into the Mississippi, where their effects on the water quality and ecosystem are substantial, the most notable of which, is eutrophication. Eutrophication is a naturally occurring process but humans have affected this process at unprecedented levels. Anthropogenic contributions to eutrophication mainly include sewage and agricultural runoff (Lund, 372). This paper focuses on the agricultural runoff aspect of water pollution and
Reduction of water availability for agricultural sector, given its high demands and low reservoir levels, which causes economic losses;
Impervious surfaces associated with urbanization alter the natural amount of water that takes each route. Increased impervious cover associated with urbanization alters the natural cycling of water. Changes in the shape and size of urban streams, followed by decreased water quality, are the most visible effects of increased imperviousness. Greater frequency and severity of flooding, channel erosion, and destruction of aquatic habitat commonly follow watershed urbanization. Alterations in the aquatic environment associated with