COMMENTARY

Farming downwind
It takes a global village to stop the pollution that hurts organic farmers and everyone, says this Tiawanese agronomy student. 

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July 14, 2005: I am a student from the Republic of China (Taiwan). I study at the Department of Agronomy in National ChungHsing University. Because I had a class about organic agriculture, I have become interested in this topic. Organic agriculture protects diversity. In organic agriculture, it is forbidden to use agricultural chemicals and chemical fertilizers, so there is no pollution!

A lot of countries have legislated laws concerning organic agriculture and organic products. But can we really do this safely? Is there really no pollution? Now the world is like a village. In other words, all the world is connected and affected by the global environment and climate, so that if we live in Taiwan we also can be affected by another country’s pollution. For example, I have an organic farm here in Taiwan, and I obey the laws hard. I do not use any agriculture chemicals or chemical fertilizers. I regard my crops as unpolluted absolutely, but I am wrong. The sandstorm has polluted many motes and comes to Taiwan from China, so that my fields and crops are polluted unconsciously. In other words, organic agriculture is hard to do 100 percent. We may work hard at it ourselves, but many factors destroy our diligence. Even in organic agriculture, it is very hard to avoid a little pollution, so I have a question: How do we improve this problem? Can “organic” really be true?

Thank you, New Farm, for offering your services. I hope the earth becomes better and healthier, with no pollution!

Sincerely,
Chang-Hsien Lin