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Course Schedule I

Course Schedule II

Agricultural and the Natural Environment

Class

Date

Topic

Class Facilitators

Guest Speaker

8

Mar 1

1. Watersheds as ecosystems
2. Ecosystem Management vs. protectionists philosophy
3. Major ecological issues facing South Florida
4. Habitat loss and fragmentation
5. Endangered species conservation
6. Restoration efforts

Required Text Reading:

Main, M.B., Roka, F.M., & Reed, F.N. (1998) "Evaluating costs of conservation." Conservation Biology, 13(6), 1262-1272. (found in course reader)

Required Web Readings:

The report of the Ecological Society of America committee on the scientific basis for ecosystem management: Executive summary.

The report of the Ecological Society of America committee on the scientific basis for ecosystem management: Full report.

Florida PIRG and Sierra Club release report detailing endangered species & habitat loss.

Sierra Club: Causes of habitat loss and species endangerment.

9

Mar 8

1. Water demand & supply
2. Water recharge
3. Water quality
4. Restoration efforts

Required Web Readings:

Water Quality: Agriculture's Role

Introduction to Earth Science: Florida Ground Water

Florida: Water resource management & agriculture industry

Suggested Web Readings:

The Everglades & the Everglades re-study

Florida Department of Environmental Protection: Water Resource Management

Chip Merriam, South Florida Water Management District

Mar 12-15

10

Mar 22

1. Agriculture pests in S. Florida
2. Pesticide use & impact
3. Bio-control & IPM

Required Readings:

Uri (1999) Agriculture chemical use, (Chapter 2) & Chapter 5, Government policy & the development & use of bio-pesticides.

Suggested Readings:

Sugarcane & the Everglades

EPA: Pesticides & Food

Pesticide Information Office, University of Florida

11

Mar 29

1. Greenspace and greenbelt
2. Agricultural lands as buffers to sprawl
3. Sprawl as a threat to agriculture

Required Readings:

Jackson (1994) Meeting the Expectations of the Land, p. 63

Suggested Readings:

The green-space dilemma

Preserving green-space with farmland

Green-space and land conservation (VA)

Buffer zones

Nebraska buffer strip program

National Conservation Buffer Council

Buffer strips to riparian zones

Protecting farmland on the edge

Farming on the edge: Urban sprawl / farmland protection involving major land resource areas (MLRA)

Urban agriculture notes

12

Apr 5

1. Environmental law - wetlands protection, clean water, endangered species
2. Taxes - Everglades Forever Act
3. Conservation program - easements, NRCS

Required Readings:

Thurman (1995) Proposed Environmentally Friendly Agriculture Programs, Chapter 4

Suggested Web Readings:

EPA: Wetlands

EPA: Wetlands fact sheets

Wetlands (Kids Resources)

The Everglades and the Everglades Re-Study

Preliminary report: Project cost estimates for implementing The Everglades Forever Act (April, 1997)

Endangered Species Coalition

The National Endangered Species Act Reform Coalition (NESARC)

1. Foreign vs. domestic food production
2. Precision agriculture & new production technology
3. Food safety & marketing trends
4. Meeting environmental objectives

Required Readings:

Jackson (1994) Land Wisdom vs. Lab Success, p. 49f, Building a Sustainable Society, p. 30; New Roots for American Agriculture, p. 106.

Required Web Readings:

The future of food and agriculture

What is sustainable agriculture?

1

2

3

4

5

6