Mass Cattle farming within modern societies can pose many environmental implications, if caution is not taken. Not only do they contribute to land degradation, they contaminate soil and water, promote over consumption, and waste excessively high amounts of resources. For many cities in Canada, this problem affects the condition of their environment. Key initiatives and programs are being mounted, now more than ever, to aid in minimizing such a demanding issue. More specifically, in Edmonton the framework that has been implemented to address these issues have been provided by several grants, courtesy of the Alberta Livestock and Meat Agency. These grants amounting to approximately $2 million, were issued in the beginning of 2011, and are to be used over the course of the next two years to introduce increases in sustainability, and a decrease in their ecological footprint. This long-term initiative includes the maintenance and improvement of: energy efficiency, water management, product and business development, food safety, bio-security, and leadership in trade. Such topics are categorized into 23 programs across 12 areas within Alberta. Through initiatives, programs, alternatives, and renovations the industry has high hopes for dramatic changes to their ecological footprint. (Canada News Centre, 2011) This is, said to be, achieved by the utilization of the crisis management theory. (Charlebois, Sylvain et al, 2007) As seen in figure 1, a long-term solution can be mapped out with basic stages of recovery and effect along the way. With these trials come tribulations in the mounting of such ambitious goals. Is it practical to believe that all these stages above can be achieved in roughly two years? Will the agency hold the trade ...
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...ce McRae, and C. A. S. Smith. Environmental Sustainability of Canadian Agriculture: Report of the Agri-Environmental Indicator Project. [Ottawa]: Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, 2000. Print.
Sylvain, Charlebois, and JoAnne Labrecque. "Processual Learning, Environmental Pluralism, and Inherent Challenges of Managing a Socioeconomic Crisis: The Case of the Canadian Cow Crisis." Journal of Macromarketing 27.2 (2007): 115-25. Journal of Macromarketing. June 2007. Web. 18 Mar. 2011. .
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Wilson, J., and J. L. Grant. "Calculating Ecological Footprints at the Municipal Level: What Is a Reasonable Approach for Canada?" Local Environment 14.10 (2009): 963-79. Print.
Joel Salatin is a 57 year old farmer who has been farming full time since 1982 on his farm “Polyface” which is located in Swoope, VA, where he is somewhat of a local legend in farming. “The farm services more than 5,000 families, 10 retail outlets, and 50 restaurants through on-farm sales and metropolitan buying clubs with salad bar beef, pastured poultry, eggmobile eggs, pigaerator pork, forage-based rabbits, pastured turkey and forestry products using relationship marketing” (Salatin, Polyface.com). Mr. Salatin utilizes a unique method of farming, a fact which makes him so profoundly interesting. The style in which he farms his land is termed “mob grazing”. Mob grazing is the process in which different animals are rotated at different times throughout the farms’ fields. He is an advocate not just for the human well being but for the world’s ecological sustainability and the continuance of growth.
This article has stressed the importance of the early conservationist impulse in Canada. Gillis suggests the most important contribution of the entire controversy was made by anti-pollution advocates of government officials to research, investigate and regulate the dumping of waste. (100) Gillis believed that this decision led to a more activist government which would cater to the public interest in the future with a theme of the relationship of Canadians with their environment (natural, social and economic) which will lead to the development of the country in a period of national transformation. (101)
From a financial and marketing standpoint, the effects have been catastrophic. In some areas, milk production has decreased by an average of two liters daily and calving index (efficiency at which new calves are produced) went down by an average of twenty days (Davies NP). Th...
Canada; known for peacekeeping, multiculturalism and having one the largest ecological footprints in the world. What is an ecological footprint? The ecological footprint is a measurement of the amount of greenhouse gases produced by the activities in a person's daily life. One main source of greenhouse gas is burning fossil fuels. That includes the gas in a person's car and the coal burned at the power plant. Scientists have concluded that humans are producing more greenhouse gases than ever before. These gases trap heat in our atmosphere, causing our planet to warm up and changing our climate. The ecological footprint, therefore, measures the amount of potential impact a person's daily life has on the environment. By reducing the amount of greenhouse gases produced by people's lifestyle, they can reduce the footprint and help slow climate change on Earth. Canadian's are starting to get accustomed to using a surplus amount of energy when it is never needed and throwing garbage on the ground because the trash can is too far away for them reach. Canadian's are also using up the little natural resources left on this planet for sustainability. Crops, oil, trees are being used so much, that there might not be enough for the future generations. Canada must realize that this is a situation that must be taken seriously and that must be executed properly by meeting the social, environmental and economical standpoints. To reduce the ecological footprint and to regain sustainability, there are many things Canadian's can do to change the current situation. Ecological footprints can be reduced by using alternative energy sources, reducing energy consumption and by using cleaner transport to reach destinations.
In Canadian context the processes that underlie within accumulation of Canadian capital are greatly influenced by factors such as demographics, social class, ethnic background, and etcetera (Hessing. et al, 39, 2005) The notions of those characteristics are evident upon the power of state in establishing the order in which society evolves and functions, as well the division of power between regions and municipalities that carries a dualistic approach in establishing an effective and efficient order to approach environmental policy-making. Winfield in Polls, Politics, and Sustainability notes, “correlation between levels of public concern for the environment and Environment Canada’s budget from the mid-1980s to the early 1990s...Government spending and policy activity on the environment increase notably during periods of high public concern. During such periods of high concern for the environment, politicians perceive a potential for political rewards for action, and also political risk if they are seen as failing to respond.” (5, 2008). For instance, whilst Canada’s Kyoto protocol ratification has been a manifestation of state that is fraught to be upon as market-driven, one-sided and prioritized with single
Adapting agriculture to climate change is essential to increase resilience of farmers and other players in the food system. Adapting food systems to climate change will take long-term visioning, targeted research, development of new technologies and human capacity development. Resilience in the farmers’ level will involve implementation of sustainable farming practices, diversification and an increased emphasis on management of the entire agro-ecological
Robinson, P. (2009). Urban Sustainability in Canada: The Global-Local Connection. In C. Gore, & P. Stoett (Eds.), Environmental Challenges and Opportunities: Local-Global Perspectives on Canadian Issues (pp. 159-181). Toronto: Edmond Montgomery Publications.
Global Environmental matters are of grave concern to many Canadian businesses. Issues such as global growth, war, and climate change have a negative impact on our businesses. These problems have negative consequences because people become displaced, have little access to water & food as a result of war and climate change. In this environment, Canadian businesses would have a hard time growing their companies and creating new products because of the limited
A varied sequence of crops provides benefits that a monoculture cannot. A monoculture is an unnatural system; the relationship between soil, plants, and climate is designed to be balanced by diversity. A carefully planned rotation that considers as many aspects of this relationship as possible is a significant step toward establishing sustainability. Although not all the effects of rotatio...
One of the main contributors to anthropogenic climate change is agriculture, which makes this study so vital to understanding and implementing the joined efforts of mitigation and adaptation, as well as policymaking. Three questions that the researchers were hoping to be able to answer at the end of the study were: 1) Do farmers consider mitigation when managing the soil?; 2) What is the prevalence of adaption actin?; and 3) what is the connection, if any, between the perception of climate change risk and mitigation and adaptation actions, respectively?
Another aspect we looked at was water consumption. The amount of water required to raise cattle for beef is shockingly high. And a lot of this is not only due to the direct consumption of water by the cattle, but the indirect consumption through the food they eat. The crops themselves require a lot of water as well. Combine the water for agriculture for the beef cattle and the direct consumption of water and we find that “nearly half of the water used in the United States” is strictly used for the beef cattle industry. To put this into perspective, and to understand what “50%” of American water use looks like, let’s look at the followin...
Wilcock, D. A. (2013). From blank spcaes to flows of life: transforming community engagment in environmental decision-making and its implcations for localsim. Policy Studies 34:4, 455-473.
Sustainable agriculture integrates three main goals--environmental health, economic profitability, and social and economic equity. A variety of philosophies, policies and practices have contributed to these goals. People in many different capacities, from farmers to consumers, have shared this vision and contributed to it.
Climate change is one of the major issues surfacing earth over the past century. The earth’s temperature has increased over the years leading to detrimental effects on the economic and life sources of people, especially that of agricultural production and livestock. The Merriam-Webster online dictionary (2014), defined climate change as a change in global climate patterns apparent from the mid late 20th century. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, IPCC, (2007) predicts that by 2100 the increase in global average surface temperature may be between 1.8° C and 4.0° C. With increases of 1.5° C to 2.5° C, approximately 20 to 30 percent of plant and animal species are expected to be at risk of extinction. Moreover, the IPCC (2007) purported that climate change has severe consequences for food security in developing countries. There are numerous factors that are solely responsible for this change which are both natural and man-made. Climate change has led to a decrease in quality and quantity of plant produce and livestock because of heat stress, drought and an increase in plant and animal diseases.
In the fast paced twenty-first century it seems that bigger is always better, however, this is not always true, especially when it comes to food; more specifically how food is produced. The negative effects of our national agricultural system affect everyone from coast to coast in almost to many ways to count. Conventional agriculture alone is the primary cause of water pollution in the United States (Winchester). Its prevention of biodiversity in relationship with its use of various chemicals generates a plethora of adverse effects on the environment; along with its soil erosion and lack of long-term soil productivity it makes us wonder why we still continue this practice (Delate). For the most part, it 's because we think that conventional