Negative impacts on an ecosystem of large-scale monocultures of crop plants

Negative impacts on an ecosystem of large-scale monocultures of crop plants

1. Use of chemicals

   • These chemicals are also toxic to wildlife, for example some herbicides are more toxic to amphibians than humans. Increased death of a certain species due to the chemicals would unbalance the food chain and the ecosystem itself.

2. Lack of diversity

   • The lack of a range of insect species means that there are no biological controls to stop the population from getting too large and damaging other plants.

3. Lack of naturally provided nutrients

4. Soil degredation

   • Ground cover crops are eliminated, meaning that there is no natural protection against erosion from wind or rain.

5. Water use

   • The lack of ground cover plants means that there is a lack of moisture retention in the soil, increasing surface runoff, As the water isn;'t absorbed, large amounts of water must be used for irrigation from lakes and rivers, depleting natural water sources and affecting aquatic ecosystems.

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