What does sustainable agriculture mean? Are permaculture and sustainable agriculture the same thing?
Graham Bell in The Permaculture Way states… Permaculture is the conscious design and maintenance of agriculturally productive systems which have the diversity, stability, and resilience of natural ecosystems. It is the harmonious integration of the landscape with people providing their food, energy, shelter and other material and non-material needs in a sustainable way.
Sustainable agriculture was addressed by Congress in the 1990 Farm Bill [Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990 (FACTA), Public Law 101-624, Title XVI, Subtitle A, Section 1603 (Government Printing Office, Washington, DC, 1990) NAL Call # KF1692.A31 1990]. Under that law…
“the term sustainable agriculture means an integrated system of plant and animal production practices having a site-specific application that will, over the long term:
- Satisfy human food and fiber needs
- Enhance environmental quality and the natural resource base upon which the agricultural economy depends
- Make the most efficient use of nonrenewable resources and on-farm resources and integrate, where appropriate, natural biological cycles and controls
- Sustain the economic viability of farm operations
- Enhance the quality of life for farmers and society as a whole.”
In my understanding I would say that these two terms are in some unison and perhaps one is a goal and the other is the way of life to meet that goal. Our understanding of these two terms is based on a means of production and not a belief system based on earth worship. I only mention the former because in some circles of permaculture some worship has played a small role in the education of these concepts. We won’t dwell on it anymore but it was something I couldn’t help but notice.
Here are the 12 principles of permaculture as described by David Holmgren.
- Observe and Interact
- Catch and Store Energy
- Obtain a yield
- Apply Self Regulation and Accept Feedback
- Use and Value Renewable Resources and Services
- Produce No Waste
- Design From Patterns to Details
- Integrate Rather Than Segregate
- Use Small and Slow Solutions
- Use and Value Diversity
- Use Edges and Value the Marginal
- Creatively Use and Respond to Change
I am excited to see these in writing because there are nothing more than a common sense approach to an end and not necessarily just related to farming! My grandfather had a homestead and his small few acres was, in retrospect an example of permaculture or sustainable living. It was a life style that both he and my grandmother embraced for many years up until their 70’s!
So as we look at these two related concepts just remember that these are the basis of how our farm production, design and way of life that we will be guided by.