GIRL POWER & SUSTAINABILITY

What are some of the things that you associate with the 1990s? I associate the 90s with  grunge fashion manufactured by Kurt Cobain, TY beanie babies, Super Nintendo, Jnco Jeans, Bill Clinton’s infamous ‘apology’ to the public, and the Power Rangers.  However, if I had to choose the one thing that truly sums up the 90s it would be the SPICE GIRLS. During the 90s I wasn’t just a fan of the SPICE GIRLS... I was THE FAN. I bought every c.d. and probably watched SPICE World close to a hundred times.  My childhood best friend also loved the Spice Girls and one of our favorite past times was assuming the alter egos of Baby Spice and Posh Spice. (mine being Baby Spice of course)  However, we could only take on these alter egos at my house because her mother banned anything that had to do with the Spice Girls from her household.  Her mother viewed the Spice Girls as cultural cultivators that oozed bad morals and promiscuity. She was concerned that allowing her daughter to be expose to their music would subtly cultivate her perceptions of reality.  In simpler terms, she didn’t want my friend to listen to their music because it would influence bad behavior and decisions.  Areas much broader than cultural issues can be cultivated by individuals.  The cultivation of cotton is viewed by some as profitable crop that creates clothing that’s comfortable to wear.  I associate the cultivation of cotton with a mixture of unsustainable procedures that actively deplete our environment.   Growing cotton may cultivate money, but ultimately the practices of growing cotton are cultivating unsustainably harmful impacts to humans and the environment.  

“Cotton can be grown using a wide range of cultivation practices determined by climate, soil type, availability of inputs, and possibly most importantly, the knowledge and skills of the farmer.” (The Sustainability of Cotton: consequences for man and environment)  The most common systems used in cotton cultivation are conventional, organic, and integrated pest management (IPM).  The three systems used in cotton cultivation all engage in applications that are unsustainable for the environment.  The Sustainability of Cotton: consequences for man and environment report the following problems in sustainability related to cotton cultivation:

• degraded land as result of salinization and erosion
• water depletion by excessive use of soil and surface water
• natural habitat conversion due to cutting of forests and dam constructions
• eutrophication of surface water
• wildlife contamination by pesticides
• human health due to direct pesticide intake 

The irrigation phase of cotton cultivation has significant environmental impacts.  The irrigation used for large scale cultivation projects most commonly utilized in the United States, manipulate excessive amounts of water unsustainably.  The excessive amounts of water used in the cultivation of cotton has contributed to water shortages that directly impact wildlife and humans.  Soil salinization also arises due to land being degrading during the irrigation phase of cotton cultivation.  The Aral Sea, is a wonderful example that accurately conveys the detrimental impacts that can result due to excessive water use.  At one time the Aral Sea area was the one of the biggest cotton providers for the USSR.  The overuse of water has contributed to the Aral Sea experiencing a huge decline in sea area levels, fish and plant species, and the fishing industry.  In the United States the High Plains Ogallala aquifer is rapidly becoming the modern day Aral Sea.  This aquifer provides water to the majority of the cotton crops that are cultivated in the southern portions of the United States.  However, the High Plains Ogallala aquifer is estimated to be “8 times faster than nature is replenishing.”  This abuse will not cease until the necessary measures are taken to refine the process of cotton cultivation. 

Organic and synthetic fertilizers are used in the cotton cultivation process.  The ingredients such as nitrate and phosphorous, commonly found in synthetic fertilizers, easily bind to surfaces, groundwater, and sediments.  Ultimately this contributes to eutrophication, which has a “devastating effect on aquatic ecosystems leading to, for example, algae growth, depletion of oxygen and a decline in aquatic plants and animals.” (The Sustainability of Cotton: consequences for man and environment) The usage of synthetic fertilizers in the cultivation of cotton also contributes to global warming.  Similar to fertilizers, the application of pesticides in cotton cultivation have highly unsustainable impacts on the environment and humans.  The Sustainability of Cotton: consequences for man and environment addresses the “pesticide use in cotton cultivation in developing countries is high: about 50% of pesticides are used in cotton cultivation and the types of pesticides used tend to be highly toxic and, although several developed countries.”  It’s also reported “in developing countries much conventional farming is far from sustainable, with demonstrated heavy pesticide impacts on the environment and on people.”  Many developing countries are devoted participants in the cultivation of cotton and these regions are the most susceptible to experiencing a larger amount of inequalities and disparities compared to developed countries.  The workers in developing countries lack the knowledge and awareness to comprehend the negative side effects associated with the application of pesticides.  In addition to the harmful impacts pesticides have on human, they’re also very harmful to the environment.  The majority of the environmental damages caused by pesticides are unintentional and often result from poor management practices.  “It is estimated that pesticides unintentionally kill 67 million birds each year.”(The Sustainability of Cotton: consequences for man and environment)  In Pakistan and Shukla, the groundwater is now contaminated due to the constant use of pesticides in cotton cultivation.

Deforestation often occurs to provide more land specifically to increase the area allotted in the cultivation of cotton.  The environmental impacts of deforestation contributes to the loss of biodiversity, soil erosion, and global warming.  The Sustainability of Cotton: consequences for man and environment reports “very large cotton fields existing in the USA and Australia may have significant impact on biodiversity.”  Many of the contributors to the unsustainable practices utilized in the cultivation of cotton are motivated by the profitability of this supposed ‘cash crop’ and fail recognize the detrimental impacts that their reaping on the environment.  Before reading this article I thought the organic cultivation of cotton had far superior sustainable practices compared to conventionally grown cotton.  However, organic and conventional systems each posses a significant amount of unsustainable techniques and practices.  For example, “when organic growers apply improper amounts of organic/natural fertilizers or apply them when the crop does not need fertilizer, they contribute to the same unsustainable elements as high input conventional systems.” (The Sustainability of Cotton: consequences for man and environment)  All production systems, conventional, organic, and IPM, may use different techniques, but all in some way or another actively engage in cultivating cotton through the usage of unsustainable practices that deplete the environment of its natural resources.

Solutions are being developed in cotton cultivation that are more sustainable for the environment.  The video Cotton & Water: white, blue, and green on the Cotton Inc. website gives us hope that in the future cotton will be cultivated using more sustainable farming techniques and practices.  Over the past thirty years, many experts have predicted global water shortages to worsen.  This has now become a reality and due to the increase of global water shortages more sustainable practices in water conservation are being developed and administered in the cultivation of cotton. Similar reports, from Cotton Inc. and The Sustainability of Cotton: consequences for man and environment, agree that cotton can be cultivated by using less water and the quality will not be sacrificed.  Cotton Inc. has begun to implement new procedures to address the unsustainable impacts that cotton cultivation contributes to soil erosion.  Conservation tillage is a newly developed method that helps reduce soil erosion.  The Sustainability of Cotton: consequence for man and environment also attributes the method of conservation tillage as a promising technique in cotton cultivation to help minimize soil erosion.  Conservation tillage protects the soil enabling it to soak up more rainfall and produces more CO2 into the atmosphere.  I’m hopeful that further techniques will be developed to ensure more sustainable practices in cotton cultivation.