Biology Weekly Seminar - Evan H. DeLucia

Rethinking American Agriculture from an Ecosystem Perspective

To feed an ever-increasing human population, more and more land under native vegetation is converted to intensive row-crop agriculture. Land conversion and changes in management practices affects the exchange of greenhouse gases and energy with the atmosphere. The conversion of temperate deciduous forest to maize, for example, dramatically decreases the climate regulating value of the converted land contributing to global warming. Diversifying agricultural practices in the American heartland can restore the climate regulating value of this landscape, without compromising food production.