SUSTAINABLE FOOD PRODUCTION

Definitions
Biodegradable: describes a substance originally made from plant and animal matter that can be
broken down into smaller parts by the activities of living organisms and is not likely to remain as a
pollutant in the environment

Salinity: occurs if groundwater rises, generally when excess water is added to groundwater supplies,
such as through irrigation. As the watertable reaches the surface, waterlogging becomes apparent
and water and salt emerge through the topsoil, forming salt crusts and killing vegetation and crops

Managing water use

 Irrigate to supply sufficient water for orchards, vineyards, vegetable and rice production and
pasture for dairy cows and sheep
 75% of all water supplies are used in agriculture
 Of the water held in the water catchment system, over 70% is used for irrigation
 Citrus fruits, soft fruits and grapes were the first crops grown under irrigation
o Areas open in Shepparton, Swan Hill and Robinvale districts
 High levels of irrigation: has led to rising watertables, salinity, the washing of herbicides and
pesticides into the water courses downstream and the potential for nitrate to leach into
groundwater and cause contamination

Salinity

 Threatens: quality of drinking water, farm productivity and the existence of the Snowy and
Murray-Darling Basin
 Causes: land clearing and irrigated land salinity (where excessive amounts of water are
diverted for irrigation)
 Irrigated-land salinity occurs if groundwater rises, generally when excess water is added to
groundwater supplies (through irrigation)
 Concerns about irrigation: if the water isn’t managed well, a rising watertable is inevitable
and salt rises to the surface

waterlogging
leads to further
becomes forms salt
watertable soil erosion and
apparent, crusts and kills
reaches the increased
water and salt vegetation and
surface salinity in rivers
emerge crops
and streams
through topsoil

Strategies for sustainable water use

1. Monitoring water quality regularly

2. Using new technologies, such as laser levelling, to flood paddocks quickly
3. Using a minimum amount of water for maximum growth and good health of the crop
Use of chemicals in primary production

Chemical or inorganic fertilisers

 In particular nitrogen-based
 Most food crops are grown on an intensive farming system where new crops are planted in
the same soil each season
o This doesn’t allow the soil to replenish the nutrients they lose naturally

Herbicides

 Are sprayed on weeds because they compete with food crops for nutrients from the soil
 They are biodegradable (breakdown after spraying)

Pesticides

 Chemicals that control particular pests on specific crops

 Have varying toxicity levels and must be used responsibly
 Sprayed onto crops and plants as they grow

Concerns

 About half of the nitrate is dissolved by rain

o This runs off the fields, can contaminate rivers and groundwater and therefore
polluting fresh water systems
 Nitrogen that is released into the atmosphere contributes to acid rain
 Consumers: anxious about the chemical residue that remains on the food crop and
accumulate in the body once the food is eaten

Managing the use of chemicals

1. Ariel spray contractors flying low to the ground to spray the crop accurately and prevent
spray drifting into other paddocks
2. Monitoring crops on a weekly basis to evaluate the insects present on the crops to
determine those that are beneficial or whether spraying is required

Land degradation

 Caused through erosion and poor soil health

Erosion

Description Strategies to minimise erosion

 occurs when vegetation covering the
land and the surface of the land's crust
is damaged
 caused by extreme weather conditions,
such as drought and poor land
management
 plants hold the soil in place and when
the natural landscape is cleared the
wind and water can erode or remove
the top soil