Is organic agriculture good for natural resource conservation?
Generally, yes. For example, because organic growers cannot use chemicals for pest control, they have to use cultural practices such as complex crop rotations. Crop rotations have numerous benefits for soil and water quality, in addition to controlling pests. Organic growers have to be attuned to pest cycles and soil health if they are to succeed at farming without chemicals. They are required to create buffers around their farm to protect it from unapproved substances from neighboring farms. These buffers may also help protect water quality, create wildlife habitat, and reduce wind erosion. On the other hand, organic operations are not free of resource concerns. Organic growers usually rely heavily on mechanical methods of weed control. Repeated tillage speeds the loss of soil organic matter to the extent that, even on organic operations, loss of organic matter and excessive tillage can be significant threats to soil quality and erosion control. Maintaining organic matter levels may b
