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Agricultural production is in a period of rapid transformation which has seen an increase in the use of biotechnology, synthetic chemistry, biological chemicals and biopesticides. These disciplines are integrated with improvements in application technology, digital farming and the use of big data. Whilst offering unique opportunities to reduce potential environmental impacts, these advances also raise new environmental concerns. This book provides an overview of the changes occurring in the agricultural industry, highlighting opportunities to address impacts and indicating potential barriers to adoption of the technology. This new edition has been updated to include the very latest in agricultural developments, including organic farming and genetically modified crops. It is of interest to students and academics, as well as farmers and landowners and those working in legislation.

Enormous increases in agricultural productivity can properly be associated with the use of chemicals. This statement applies equally to crop production through the use of fertilizers, herbicides and pesticides, as to livestock production and the associated use of drugs, steroids and other growth accelerators. There is, however a dark side to this picture and it is important to balance the benefits which flow from the use of agricultural chemicals against their environmental impacts which sometimes are seriously disadvantageous. Agricultural Chemicals and the Environment explores a variety of issues which currently are subject to wide-ranging debate and are of concern not only to the scientific establishment and to students, but also to farmers, landowners, managers, legislators, and to the general public.