Biosphere reserves and human ecosystems
Homo sapiens is the world's most successful species, filling a niche which reaches from the polar regions to tropical islands. The four basic categories of human ecological nice -- hunting and gathering, pastoralism, traditional agriculture, and industrial agriculture -- are described, and the role of biosphere reserves in maintaining and enchancing these systems is discussed. The first three systems still have much to contribute to human welfare if they are allowed to continue, biosphere reserves provide an ideal mechanism for ensuring their survival. Industrial agriculture has supported a considerable increase in human population. However, it is very expensive in energy terms, often consuming about ten times the energy (in caloric terms) that it produces. Should the energy subsidy of modern agriculture be withdrawn, or become so expensive that it can no longer be a significant factor in the human ecosystem, we may have either a new "golden age" based on sustainable sources of energy and sustainable agro-ecosystems or else a total breakdown of industrial agriculture with a return to traditional ways of life (and traditional population levels?). No matter what happens, biosphere reserves can play an important role in developing sustainable human ecosystems. If a golden age is to come, which is clearly the option of choice, then science must focus on developing new ways and means of controlling agricultural pests, producing fertilizers, and developing sustainable cropping systems. Biosphere reserves can be the site of genetic resource conservation, research on new agro-ecosystems, and experimentation on sustainable human ecosystems. Sicen traditional human ecosystems can provide important insights into sustainability of resource use, biosphere reserves where traditional people continue to flourish will be important sources of information for the maintenance of sustainable systems.
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | biblioteca |
| Published: |
(URSS)
1984
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| Subjects: | POBLACION HUMANA, RESERVA DE LA BIOSFERA, |
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