Skip to main content

Main menu

  • Home
  • Content
    • Current Issue
    • Early Online
    • Archive
    • Subject Collections
  • Info For
    • Authors
    • Reviewers
    • Subscribers
    • Advertisers
  • About
    • About JSWC
    • Editorial Board
    • Call for Research Editor
    • Permissions
    • Alerts
    • RSS Feeds
    • Contact Us

User menu

  • Register
  • Subscribe
  • My alerts
  • Log in
  • My Cart

Search

  • Advanced search
Journal of Soil and Water Conservation

  • Register
  • Subscribe
  • My alerts
  • Log in
  • My Cart
Journal of Soil and Water Conservation

Advanced Search

  • Home
  • Content
    • Current Issue
    • Early Online
    • Archive
    • Subject Collections
  • Info For
    • Authors
    • Reviewers
    • Subscribers
    • Advertisers
  • About
    • About JSWC
    • Editorial Board
    • Call for Research Editor
    • Permissions
    • Alerts
    • RSS Feeds
    • Contact Us
  • Follow SWCS on Twitter
  • Visit SWCS on Facebook
Research ArticleResearch Section

Spending our water and soils for food security

W. Busscher
Journal of Soil and Water Conservation May 2012, 67 (3) 228-234; DOI: https://doi.org/10.2489/jswc.67.3.228
W. Busscher
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
  • Article
  • References
  • Info & Metrics
  • PDF
Loading

Excerpt

While the farmer holds the title to the land, actually it belongs to all the people because civilization itself rests upon the soil. —Thomas Jefferson

For the most part, food security is dependent on our soil and water resources. Recent food security studies in economics, geology, and anthropology (Diamond 2005; Montgomery 2007; Rosen et al. 2008) have concluded that soil and water resources will reach critical levels and, before long, fail to feed us. Among the causes of the crisis is the expected dramatic rise over the next few decades in world population and the stress it will put on resources (FAO 2008; Janzen et al. 2011). The crisis is predicted to cause anything from increased starvation to societal collapse. Our challenge is to secure food supplies through the proper use of soil and water. And, in this endeavor, energy plays no small role.

Over time, in many developing countries, food security cannot be maintained (FAO 2008); yet, in developed countries, where food stores peaked in the middle 1980s, it is more than satisfied. As in other times of plenty (Mazoyer and Roudart 2006), to eliminate excessive overhead, stores were reduced and production curtailed. In recent…

  • © 2012 by the Soil and Water Conservation Society

This article requires a subscription to view the full text. If you have a subscription you may use the login form below to view the article. Access to this article can also be purchased.

Log in using your username and password

Forgot your user name or password?

Purchase access

You may purchase access to this article. This will require you to create an account if you don't already have one.
PreviousNext
Back to top

In this issue

Journal of Soil and Water Conservation: 67 (3)
Journal of Soil and Water Conservation
Vol. 67, Issue 3
May/June 2012
  • Table of Contents
  • About the Cover
  • Index by author
  • Front Matter (PDF)
Download PDF
Article Alerts
Sign In to Email Alerts with your Email Address
Email Article

Thank you for your interest in spreading the word on Journal of Soil and Water Conservation.

NOTE: We only request your email address so that the person you are recommending the page to knows that you wanted them to see it, and that it is not junk mail. We do not capture any email address.

Enter multiple addresses on separate lines or separate them with commas.
Spending our water and soils for food security
(Your Name) has sent you a message from Journal of Soil and Water Conservation
(Your Name) thought you would like to see the Journal of Soil and Water Conservation web site.
CAPTCHA
This question is for testing whether or not you are a human visitor and to prevent automated spam submissions.
2 + 2 =
Solve this simple math problem and enter the result. E.g. for 1+3, enter 4.
Citation Tools
Spending our water and soils for food security
W. Busscher
Journal of Soil and Water Conservation May 2012, 67 (3) 228-234; DOI: 10.2489/jswc.67.3.228

Citation Manager Formats

  • BibTeX
  • Bookends
  • EasyBib
  • EndNote (tagged)
  • EndNote 8 (xml)
  • Medlars
  • Mendeley
  • Papers
  • RefWorks Tagged
  • Ref Manager
  • RIS
  • Zotero
Request Permissions
Share
Spending our water and soils for food security
W. Busscher
Journal of Soil and Water Conservation May 2012, 67 (3) 228-234; DOI: 10.2489/jswc.67.3.228
Reddit logo Twitter logo Facebook logo Mendeley logo
  • Tweet Widget
  • Facebook Like
  • Google Plus One

Jump to section

  • Article
  • Info & Metrics
  • References
  • PDF

Related Articles

  • No related articles found.
  • Google Scholar

Cited By...

  • No citing articles found.
  • Google Scholar

More in this TOC Section

Research Section

  • Characteristics of the soil macropore and root architecture of alpine meadows during the seasonal freezing-thawing process and their impact on water transport in the Qinghai Lake watershed, northeastern Qinghai–Tibet Plateau
  • Long-term drainage water recycling affects soil health and soil properties
  • Effects of different vegetation restoration types on soil infiltration characteristics in severely eroded subtropical regions of South China
Show more Research Section

Research Editorial

  • Ecosystem services in Iowa agricultural catchments: Hypotheses for scenarios with water quality wetlands and improved tile drainage
  • Soil health: Meaning, measurement, and value through a critical zone lens
  • Integrated data across multiple and diverse disciplines are essential for developing a sustainable food system
Show more Research Editorial

Similar Articles

Content

  • Current Issue
  • Early Online
  • Archive
  • Subject Collections

Info For

  • Authors
  • Reviewers
  • Subscribers
  • Advertisers

Customer Service

  • Subscriptions
  • Permissions and Reprints
  • Terms of Use
  • Privacy

SWCS

  • Membership
  • Publications
  • Meetings and Events
  • Conservation Career Center

© 2023 Soil and Water Conservation Society