NOT PAYING BACK

Wairarapa Times-Age, 31 August 1940, Page 8

NOT PAYING BACK

BORROWING FROM SOIL EFFECT ON PUBLIC HEALTH. PHENOMENON OF EROSION. “For a long time,” said Lord Northbourne during his latest address to the Economic Reform Club in London a few weeks ago, “the practical agricultural ideal has been to cheapen production by means of machinery and artificial fertilisers,” says a statement by the Physical and Mental Welfare Sociey. “Production has accordingly been cheapened at the expense of lhe soil. Food at a price which has actually been below the true cost of such production. This process has been carried on by a system of borrowing from the soil—by a system of that kind of borrowing which does not pay back!

Agriculture has contracted a biological debt, an irreparable debt. "All over the world." proclaimed Lord Northbourne, "agriculture is borrowing from the soil —living on Life’s only capital. The most obvious result of this mistaken policy is a phenomenon which is creating a certain amount of public interest (but not much public action), the phenomenon v.i'. soil-erosion. AMERICA'S LOSS. "America has lest one-third of her soil and is continuing to lose it at an increasing rate each year. The rate of erosion in Australia and Allies may be oven greater.” (It may bo mentioned at this point tnat soil-erosion in New Zealand is responsible for an annual less, approximately, of: Phosphates, 150.000 tons; potassium. 350.00(1 tons; calcium, 640.000 tons; sulphur. 132.000 tons: in addition to 2.200,001) tons of organic matter of various kinds).

"Although these figures in regal'd to erosion are so terrifying.” continued Lord Northbourne, "they merely describe tile final stages of a condition in which almost tile whole of the land of tile globe is involved, in progressive deterioration and loss of fertility. I have not the slightest doubt that the world is heading, at an incredibly rapid rate, towards biological exhaustion, whose progress directly affects the health of man. animal and plant. Mankind's real health is collapsing. "Although lhe individual is now living longer, his increased longevity is only ’prolonging his misery,' tor

very few mon or women now enjoy true health. We have a sort of imitation health produced by a process of patching-up a fabric that is inherently unsound, and keeping it going by the application of stimulants of various kinds. Certainly we are reducing the old-fashioned epidemics: but. on the other hand the degenerative diseases are gaining ground at an alarming rate. SPUHIOUS “HEALTH.” "I suggest to you." said Lord Norlhbou’.nc, "that you classify the first hundred advertisements you come across, with a view to noting the enormous percentage of those whose appeal is directed towards health, or whose aim is io ensure an appearance of health land in these cosmetics should be included). We aim merely al the appearance—not the reality of

health. Health is our obsession to an extraordinary degree, so we have recourse to stimulants, including those for (he mind. "Britain spends every year £275,000.000 on public health. This exceeds £6 per head of the population and of course doos not include private expenditure on sickness, which must bo an even greater amount. The health e.f our animals is no better than our own. There are increasing demands for veterinary services, and there is great, cliflienlty in maintaining the vigour of breeding-stocks There is. too. a shortening of the 'useful’ life of the ; irmal: and in the case of poultry and dairy-cows tills drawback has begun to overshadow the benefit of high yields from individual animals.”