Theory question 103
Population Ecology(a) Mention six ways by which the government is contributing towards self-sufficiency in food production
(b) List five methods of conserving soil fertility
(c) Explain how three named agricultural practices can destroy the balance of an ecosystem.
Show the model answer
(a) Any six: loans/credit to farmers; subsidised fertilizers and agro-chemicals; supplying improved seeds and seedlings; agricultural research institutes; extension services/teaching farmers; irrigation schemes and river basin authorities; building rural roads and storage facilities; programmes such as Operation Feed the Nation/Green Revolution; guaranteed prices/marketing; mechanisation (tractor hire)
(b) Any five: crop rotation; adding manure/compost; use of fertilizers; planting legumes/cover crops; mulching; bush fallowing; contour ploughing and terracing; avoiding bush burning; mixed farming
(c) Any three: bush burning – kills soil organisms and wildlife, destroys humus, exposes soil to erosion; deforestation/land clearing – destroys habitats, causes erosion and changes climate; overgrazing – removes plant cover, leads to erosion and desertification; misuse of pesticides/herbicides – kills useful organisms, pollutes water and food chains; monocropping – exhausts nutrients and builds up pests; excess fertilizer – runs into water causing eutrophication
Name each practice and say what part of the ecosystem it damages.