Category: Posts on Creation
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Alleviating the Problems of Plowing, Solution 1: No-Till Agriculture
Plowing causes serious problems in our ecosystems. Erosion (loss of soil itself) and soil degradation (loss of nutrients and soil compaction) are two significant problems that affect localized fields and areas downstream. But plowing also releases large amounts of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere; this is a global challenge. Now more than ever before, people…
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The Problems of Plowing, Part 2: Erosion
You’ve probably seen pictures of what can happen after fields are plowed: soil erodes. Winds blow across plowed fields, stirring up and carrying away topsoil. Waters rush across naked soil, sweeping it into streams, roads, and other unintended destinations. Photo by Fred Farrell on June 3, 2005 in San Luis Valley, Colorado (https://infosys.ars.usda.gov/winderosion/multimedia/2005storms/big/SLVSandStorm6.jpg) Sometimes erosion…
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The Problems of Plowing, Part 1: Greenhouse Gases
We all know tractors burn fuel and release CO2 into the atmosphere. It is rather obvious, then, that plowing with tractors increases the concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. But did you also know that simply opening the soil to air during plowing also releases greenhouse gases? When the organic matter in soil (such…