Farmland and water must be preserved for future generations

By: STA Date: 2023. 09. 28. 09:00

Agricultural land, water, ecological diversity and forest must be preserved for future generations by the state and everyone, said the Minister of Agriculture on Thursday in Budapest.

(Photo: AM/István Fekete)

At the Planet Budapest 2023 Sustainability Expo and Experience Program, István Nagy participated in a round-table discussion with former president János Áder and the chairman of the board of trustees of the Kék Bolygó Foundation, which organized the event. The head of the ministry and the former head of state also emphasized that the farmland is a multifaceted ecosystem, and the animals, fungi, and bacteria found in it are necessary to be able to produce an adequate amount of high-quality food. István Nagy drew attention to the fact that the number of microorganisms in the soil has decreased to 10 percent in the last 50 years. “It is not enough that we are losing cropland as a result of urbanization and industrial development, but the quality of our existing cropland is also deteriorating,” said the minister. That is why the soil monitoring system is important, which serves to provide a comprehensive picture of the state of Hungary’s soil, he said, noting that Hungary is capable of supplying 20 million people with basic food. According to the head of the department, the soil monitoring system is also necessary due to the determination of the humus content of the soil, the effects of last year’s drought and the use of nitrogen-containing fertilizers. István Nagy touched on the fact that in the coming years, due to drastic climate change, it will not be possible to leave agricultural land bare, it will be necessary to cover the soil.

János Áder drew attention to the fact that if the absorption of the fertilizer is not good, then only one quarter of the nitrogen contained in it is utilized by the plant. And two-thirds of the remaining nitrogen becomes a greenhouse gas or leaks out and contaminates groundwater. Therefore, according to the former president of the republic, in the long term, it cannot be allowed to produce fertilizer from natural gas at an expensive cost, with significant carbon dioxide emissions, of which only a small part can be utilized by the plant.

János Áder also pointed out that inadequate tillage also worsens the water balance of the soil. István Nagy stated that the water-related problem always meant floods before, but it is important to know that the country is also highly exposed to drought. According to the head of the ministry, the explanation for the latter is that the forest was cut down in our water catchment areas, and last year the water yield of the Danube was 40 percent less, and that of the Tisza 60 percent less. At the same time, he indicated that – in order to deal with the drought – it is also necessary to deal with ecological water replacement, where great emphasis will be placed on raising the groundwater level. In response to this, János Áder formulated it as a global dilemma, that with less and less water per person, more and more people will have to be supplied with sufficient and high-quality food in the coming decades on increasingly poor quality soil. In this context, István Nagy noted that one of the biggest difficulties in the world stems from the convenience point of view, that “we want everything, at all times”.

The expo and experience program, which can be visited free of charge, awaits those interested in the Hungexpo area until October 1.