How Safe & Beneficial Are Pesticides & Fertilizers?
Farmers and homeowners use pesticides and fertilizers to improve the appearance and quality of agricultural crops, lawns and ornamental plants. Although pesticides and fertilizers have substantial benefits, they also have a number of drawbacks. Does this Spark an idea?
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Benefits
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Nitrogen fertilizers allows farmers to increase wheat and rice production. Both humans and livestock depend upon these crops for survival. According to an article by Keith Bradsher and Andrew Martin in the New York Times on May 1, 2008, 40 percent of the world's population would not have enough food without nitrogen fertilizers to improve the soil. Pesticides reduce insect damage to crops and prevent serious mosquito-borne diseases such as West Nile virus.
Considerations
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Runoff from nitrogen-based fertilizers filter into the groundwater and drain out to sea. Once in the water, they foster the growth of algae. The algae drains oxygen supplies and kills marine life, creating dead zones. Many researchers suspect that pesticides cause nerve disorders, tumors and birth defects.
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Expert Insight
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The benefits of agricultural fertilizers and pesticides outweigh their risks, according to the University of Florida IFAS Extension. However, the University of Missouri Extension indicates that homeowners use ten times more chemical pesticides and fertilizers than farmers for every acre of soil. Homeowners can limit the use of environmental chemicals by hand-pulling weeds, using traps or water sprays to control insect problems, and having soil tested before applying fertilizers.
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References
- New York Times: Shortage and Price of Fertilizer Threatens to Make More Hungry
- University of Florida IFAS Extension: Why Do We Use Pesticides?
- Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences: Toxicity of Pesticides
- University of Missouri Extension: Yard and Garden Care: How it Affects Your Health and Environment
