used to be available to farmers before Green Revolution (Development Forum). Over the last decade of intensified collection, more than 90 percent of the seed has been either gone to industrialized countries (where plant patent legislation prevails) or to the international agricultural research centers located throughout the third world regions, outside the sovereign control of ‘donating’ countries and especially of the farmers who have cultivated these seeds for generations. As a result of pesticide contamination, there had also been the loss of local species that included fish, snails, and frogs from the paddy fields which are additional food sources for farmers (GRAIN, 1998).

The present state of biological diversity in Asia’s paddy fields is likewise alarming. By the mid-1980s, only two HYVs occupied 98 percent of the entire rice growing area of the Philippines. In Thailand and Burma, five varieties occupy today nearly 40 percent of the total rice area, while in Pakistan the top five occupy 80 percent. In Cambodia, a single IRRI variety accounts for 84 percent of the country’s dry season crop (GRAIN, 1998). Such widespread uniformity leaves Asia’s rice crops in an extremely vulnerable position.
The depletion of the traditional varieties had resulted in the difficulty of farmers to revert back to them after suffering from declining yields and crop failures with HYVs. The reliance on HYVs and GR farming had been so entrenched that the GR rice farmers across Asia had lost the control and flexibility in coping with farm problems and pressures. Monocropping’s crucial impact was the emergent and persistent vulnerability of the rice crop to pests and diseases.

Losses include other sections of the resource base, such as fish, snails, frogs and birds from the paddy fields, which are an additional source of food for the farmers. The pesticides also impact the health of the buffaloes. Another dietary loss is the “weeds” and wild plants that exist along with the crops, some used for food, while others used as raw materials, sometimes used by women in the production of items to be sold for additional income (Ramprasad, 2005).

Soil and water systems degraded by GR

Two-thirds of the world’s agro-ecosystems have seen degradation as a result of GR. Evidences of the destruction of soil microorganisms and weakening of soil structure as a result of the intensive application of fertilizer and pesticides are all over GR farms — through erosion, salinization, and nutrient depletion.

Pesticides, as mentioned, are the crutch of the monoculture-based GR system. Monocultures attract pests that kill both insects and natural predators, disrupt the natural balance and encourage pest resistance and outbreaks. A large percentage of pesticides do not reach target pests; the remainder is lost from the soil by leaching, run-off and volatilization, and contaminates people, land, water, air and fosters the emergence of resistant strains of pests (FAO Towards a New GR). Herbicides remove the weeds which otherwise hold soil in place and provide habitat for beneficial insects (Meriel Watts, 2005).

Pesticides allow use of chemical fertilizers that produce soft disease-prone plants, and contaminate waterways and groundwater. The chemical fertilizers that come with the pesticide package allow the farmer to boost yield without using compost. But the resulting failure to return organic matter to the soil eventually leads to breakdown in soil structure and health, and build up disease and insects, and a loss of productivity (Meriel Watts, 2005).

Many of the pesticides still in widespread use in Asia continue to have negative impacts on insects, birds and other non-target organisms, diminishing natural and agro-ecological biodiversity (ESCAP 2002). With the decline in yield capacity of HYVs, farmers resorted to applying more fertilizers, most of which are lost to leaching, run-off and volatilization.

The intensification of agricultural production associated with the adoption of HYVS has generated a number of environmental problems related to irrigation. One such concern is salinization, which is reported in the Indus River Basin in South central Asia. Salinity now is reported to affect more than 20 percent of the irrigated land in China and Pakistan. Another problem is over-exploitation of water and thus the lowering of groundwater levels, as water is being pumped out of the ground for irrigation faster than it can be replenished (according to IRRI, it could take up to 5,000 liters of water to produce just one kilogram of rice). Over-exploitation of groundwater are seen in such areas as northwestern India and North China. (FAO Towards a New GR)

 Save as PDF