Reference no: EM132212990

Arable land

Land that is appropriate for plowing and growing of crops is considered to be arable land. The term is used to refer to the land that is currently under cultivation, and the land has the potential of being cultivated. It encompasses land that is of soil and climate suitable for agricultural purposes. The land also has to be protected by the right regime of policies, regulations, and acts of parliament.

How Human Influence Has Affected Arable Land

Human beings are responsible for the increasing rate of the scarcity of arable land. The increase in human population has led to the occupation of formerly arable land thereby reducing the land that can be put under agriculture (Zabel, Putzenlechner, & Mauser, 2014).

Industries established by man have not only taken up the land suitable for agriculture but has also populated the environment and caused global warming that makes the current global climate unsuitable for agriculture.

Deforestation, urbanization, and poor cultivation methods are other human activities that have led to a decrease of the global size of arable land. Increased human population has created pressure on the available arable as the land is overexploited to meet the human demands.

Solution to The Problem

Due to the availability of new technologies, more land can be made suitable for agriculture. Individual governments can reclaim more land from the seas and oceans while the dry areas can be made suitable through the use of irrigation (Lanz, Dietz, & Swanson, 2017). The existing arable land should also be conserved using laws and programs that are focused on solving or alleviating the human pressure that leads to their depletion.

Whether International Agreement Is A Suitable Method of Solving the Problem

Some of the factors that are causing depletion of arable land such as climate change are global in nature and therefore requires a global measure. Having an international agreement will only be effective if individual countries, especially the more powerful countries commit to it.

Further, without an effective enforcement mechanism, an international agreement will not be effective. The increasing reduction of arable land should be a concern to all the nations, and more proactive measures should be adopted instead of relying on the current reactive measures that are not effective.

References

Lanz, B., Dietz, S., & Swanson, T. (2017). Global economic growth and agricultural land conversion under uncertain productivity improvements in agriculture. American Journal of Agricultural Economics, 100(2), 545-569.