[LINK] Exponential growth [was Microsoft is dead ... were it so!]

[Antony Barry]

On 11/04/2007, at 8:05 AM, Alan L Tyree wrote:

Quoting Ehlich

> "The battle to feed all of humanity is over. In the 1970s and 1980s
> hundreds of millions of people will starve to death in spite of any
> crash programs embarked upon now. At this late date nothing can  
> prevent
> a substantial increase in the world death rate..."


The green revolution came along with crops which could resist pests,  
take advantage of fertilisers and irrigation and were suited to big  
monocultures.

We are losing access to water and thence irrigation because of global  
warming.

Industrial agriculture won't work when oil and gas run out as we will  
lose fuel, fertiliser and pesticides.

Insects are evolving which by passour defenses. See this weeks "New  
Scientist" where Nobel Laureate, Norman Borlaug and the inventor of  
the Green Revolution is quoted saying "this thing has immense  
potential for social and human destruction"[1]. Wheat blight is back.

In almost all areas of the world soil is being lost and degraded.

We are going to lose the green revolution. We are already pushing at  
the limits of  photosynthetic productivity [2] and the other inputs  
are being eroded.

_._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._.


1. Debora Mackenzie, "Billions At Risk From Wheat Super-Blight," New  
Scientist No.2598 (2007): p.6-7.

2. Bruce Bugbee, Oscar Monje, "The Limits of Crop Productivity"  
BioScience, Vol. 42, No. 7, Crop Productivity for Earth and Space  
(Jul. - Aug., 1992), pp. 494-502 doi:10.2307/1311879

Tony

phone : 02 6241 7659 | mailto:me at Tony-Barry.emu.id.au
mobile: 04 1242 0397 | mailto:tony.barry at alianet.alia.org.au
http://tony-barry.emu.id.au