Use the Toxic Release Inventory on the Internet to investigate ...

[pragya sharda]

Use the Toxic Release Inventory on the Internet to investigate the location and amounts of toxic chemicals released in your state or region.
 
  What will be an ideal response?

Question 2

Define sustainability in an agricultural context. In what ways is modern industrial agriculture unsustainable?
 
  What will be an ideal response?

[ErinKing]

Answer to Question 1

Responses to this question will differ. You might consider asking students to do their search using their home county or zip code. This will provide more data to compare among students. The number of businesses with toxic chemical releases will be surprising to many. Even counties or zip codes with little industry are likely to have data. A number of different reports can be generated: (1) by quantity of each chemical or by industry (by chemical), (2) trends in chemical releases by county or zip code, (3) chemical releases by geographic region (state, all counties, counties within a state), and (4) by industry type for the whole country, within a state, or within a county. Additionally, maps can be generated for the United States and for each state (by county).

Answer to Question 2

A sustainable farm might look like the large farms we are used to, though with fewer chemicals, fewer fossil fuels, and fewer of the most wasteful types of irrigation. Modern industrial agriculture uses large amounts of chemical fertilizer, is fossil fuel intensive, uses large-scale irrigation, and lacks polyculture.

[pragya sharda]

Thank you

[ErinKing]

No problemo