Increasing Food

Production:
Altering the Landscape
An Overview
1. An Overview
• Since the origins of farming,
humans have altered the
landscape to their advantage.

• Today, many of these

alterations are considered
natural - though at one time
they were new and creatively
innovative solutions to
obstacles faced by the
earliest farmers.
Terracing
1. What is it?
• One of the earliest methods, terrace farming is when farmers build a series of steps
into the side of a hill to create flat surfaces on which they can farm.

• Benefits?
 Planting, tending, and harvesting crops is physically easier for farmers.

 The land collects rainfall rather than allowing it to run down a sloped hillside,
which then helps sustain crops.

 The reduction in water running down the hillside reduces soil erosion.

• Downside?
 If not carefully maintained, heavy rainfall can cause deadly mudslides.
Activity #1:
1. Describe why
Incan terracing is
an innovative and
sophisticated
agriculture solution
in the Andes
Mountains.
Terraces in African States

Above, tea is grown in Kenya using terraces.

Olive trees and fruits are also often in grown
using terraces in Africa.
Rwanda
Terraces in South East Asia

Above, wet rice is grown using terraces in

Vietnam.
Longsheng
Rice Terrace in
Longsheng
county,
Guangxi
Province,
southern
China.
Terraces in South America

Above, historical terraces developed by the Inca in

modern day Peru. Today, terraces are used heavily
for potatoes and maize throughout SA.
Irrigation
1. What is it?
• Irrigation is the process of divert water from its natural course or location to aid in the production
of crops.

• This has been done for thousands of years, dating back at least 6,000 years to the civilizations of
ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia.
 It has become more effective over time.

• Benefits?
 Brings water directly to crops, yielding more output.

• Downside?
 Can disrupt the natural drainage of water and reduce regeneration of soil caused by natural
flooding.
 Can result in salinization of soil which can decrease crop yield.
 Can cause subsidence, or the collapse of land, when too much groundwater is removed too
quickly.
Basin Irrigation in Ancient Egypt

The predictable flooding and controlled irrigation of the fertile valley produced surplus crops,
which supported a denser population, and social development and culture
Drip Irrigation in Mexico

Drip irrigation conserves water use, especially in arid

regions, by slowly dripping water onto plants and their
roots.
Sprinkler Irrigation in California
Draining Wetlands
1. What is it?
• The process of draining wetlands, or area with water, has been done
to create more farmland.

• Benefits?
 Increases a region’s carrying capacity and crop yield.

• Downside?
 It can reduce the biodiversity in both plants and animals by destroying their
habitats.

 Wetlands often serve as natural filters that protect and promote surface water
and groundwater quality.
Modifying the Netherlands

The Dutch have modified their environment by creating polders, or a piece of land created by
draining water from an area.
Deforestation
1. What is it?
• The process of deforestation is the removal of large tracts of forests
and has occurred all over the world.

• Benefits?
 Increases a region’s carrying capacity and crop yield.

• Downside?
 It can lead to local problems such as soil erosion, decrease in rainfall, and
desertification.

 It can also cause devastation and global environmental damage (i.e., rainforests
absorb immense amounts of carbon dioxide.)
Slash and Burn Practices

Slash and Burn clears land and adds nutrients to the soil, but because of its overall negative
impact many areas of outlawed it. Above – illegal slash and burning in Madagascar.
Desertification
• Desertification is the process in which areas turn to desert.
Solutions to Desertification in the Sahel:
 Impact of the Great Green Wall Initiative
so far in just two of the countries:
Nigeria:  Ethiopia:
 7.6 million plants and seedlings produced
 2,801 hectares of reforested lands created
 373 hectares of multipurpose gardens
created
 709km of windbreaks
 1,205 people trained in food and energy
security as well as in biodiversity
maintenance
 1,396 jobs created
Source: https://www.unccd.int/our-work/ggwi/impact
 
 More than 5 billion plants and seeds produced
 151,448 hectares of reforested lands restored
 792,711 hectares of terraces restored
 240 hectares of multi-purpose gardens restored
 91 km of windbreaks
 236,551 hectares of Assisted Natural Regeneration of forests
 893,706 hectares watershed management and forest
 62,759 people trained in food and energy security as well as
biodiversity maintenance
 218,405 jobs created
 1 million hectares of land restored in total
The Black Forest; Germany

By the 1850s, the Black Forest in Germany was almost complete deforested. Overall, Northern
Europe historically had much more forest than it currently does.
Please complete -
1. Activity #2 – Response to the Supporting Question

2. CONNECT TO THE COMPELLING QUESTION -- Consider how

this element of agriculture can serve as evidence to help
you develop and support an answer for the compelling
question.